


Safe House

by pdshalstud



Category: Chicago PD (TV)
Genre: #jayhalstead #erinlindsay #linstead #au, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-24
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-08-07 04:37:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 30
Words: 78,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16401446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pdshalstud/pseuds/pdshalstud
Summary: AU. In attempt to get away from the dangers following her in Chicago. Erin Lindsay goes to northern Wisconsin, where she gets put under the protective custody of Jay Halstead...Sorry I still suck at summaries. Rated M for future chapters





	1. Chapter 1

As she sits on the edge of the awful salmon color bath tub. She stares off blankly, the crimson red letters spelling out ‘I found you’ written on the wall in her bedroom at Hank's house, its all she can think about, the image burned into her memory. The timer on her new phone goes off, breaking her from thoughts momentarily as she stands to rinse her hair. Once she's done, she rubs her towel back and forth quickly all around her head. Then she looks at herself in the dimly lit motel bathroom. She decided to dye her hair, from the natural brunette color, to a dirty blonde. She also cut a few inches off, so it came to rest on her shoulders, instead of going past them. She'd hoped it'd help hide from him. The whole reason she was doing this, was to get away from him. She just hoped their plan of getting away would work, and he wouldn't find her. She grips the edge of the sink so her knuckles are turning white. She feels sick, she's nervous, and scared. She takes a deep breath, before she walks out of the bathroom, to find Hank; a man who has been like a father to her for the last ten years, is talking to a guy she's never met before.   
“Erin, this is Antonio, I worked with him when he was a rookie, back in Chicago, until he decided to move with his family here. He’s good police, and I trust him. He'll be taking you the rest of the way.” Hank says   
“How long do I have to stay there?”   
“Erin we've been over this, you'll stay there until we catch Charlie.” Hank answers, he walks over to where Erin stands next to her German Shepherd, Chance. The ninety pound dog has never liked Hank, or any man for that matter. Erin blamed Charlie and his friends for tormenting him when she first found him as a malnourished puppy, five years ago. Chance had never bitten anyone, and usually stopped growling, when Erin would say his name. But tonight he wasn't having it and wouldn't allow Hank to come too close to her.   
“Alright, I'll stop here.” He says to the dog now standing between them.   
“I'll keep in touch with Antonio, we won't stop until we get him.”   
“Ok, I hope you find him soon.”  
“We will, just think of this as a little vacation.”   
“You know I've always been a home body.”   
“I know, but this is the safest option for you.”  
“Yeah.”   
“Take care kid, I'll see you soon.”   
“Thanks Hank.” She says, tears in her eyes, being a street kid, not much scared Erin, but this, leaving Illinois, leaving her life, and going to northern Wisconsin, scared the shit out of her.   
XXXXXX  
Erin's POV   
I try to take a nap, in hopes that when I woke we'd be there, and the seven hour drive would be over. But between Chance’s panting and Antonio not so light singing, I can't seem to calm myself enough to just close my eyes and go to sleep. His singing isn't bad, but the song he's singing along to isn't exactly a lullaby. I let him finish the song, before I reach for the volume and turn it down.  
“So Antonio what do I have to look forward to in…”   
“Hayfield, and it may not seem like much at first, but it’s a nice town, it's pretty small, so everyone knows each other.” He says, and I gulp, not liking the idea. ‘Its just temporary Erin' I say in my head.   
“I know it probably sounds scary, but everyone will accept you quickly. It only took my family and I a few weeks to fit in.”   
“How long have you lived in Hayfield?” I ask   
“Five years.”   
“I feel like this going to be exactly like being the new kid at school.” I say and chuckles.   
After that its quiet again, and I turn the radio back up a little. I tap my fingers, against the door, to the beat, as I look out the window. At some point I fall asleep. Unfortunately when I wake up we are stopped at a gas station. When Antonio gets back in the car, he looks down at his phone intently.   
“Hey how was your nap?”   
“Ok thanks, umm how much longer do we have to go?”   
“You were out for a while, so we only have about a hour and a half left, and then you'll be at my partner's house.”   
“Partner? I thought I'd be staying with you or Al.”   
“No sorry.” He says, and I was hoping he was going to elaborate on why, but he doesn't.   
“But at least he's a Halstead.” He adds after a few minutes of silence.   
“What does that mean?”   
“The Halstead's pretty much own everything up there.” He says, and I just nod, still not quite sure why that matters to me.   
XXXXXX  
“Are you serious? Come on Uncle Al, why are you punishing me?” Jay said as he walks into his Uncle and Sergeants office   
“Oh I don't know, maybe because you've averaged totaling a car a month, and you've only been on the force three months.” Al answers   
“Only one of those accidents was my fault, and I was in pursuit of a suspect, I was too caught in the moment to remember to put the car in park.”   
“I don't care whose fault it was. Either you watch this girl, or you can ride the desk. Its up to you nephew.” Al says to him, and Jay rubs his face letting out a frustrated groan.   
“Who is this girl again?”   
“Erin Lindsay, same age as you, she's my old partner from Chicago's daughter.”   
“And why is she being brought here?”   
“She's been being stalked by her ex boyfriend, he was supposed to be serving a life sentence after killing Erin's best friend 4 years ago, Erin testified against him.”   
“Ok so if he’s in prison, why does she need protection?”   
“You don't listen, he was supposed to be serving, but he escaped about a month ago, and they haven't been able to track him down. He's left notes at her apartment, made phone calls, wrote in blood on her childhood bedroom wall….Its just until they catch him Jay”   
“Got it. Where am I babysitting?”  
“The cabin.”   
“What?”  
“She'll be safest with you at all times.”   
“Fine, is that all?”  
“Here's all the files, read up, Antonio text, ETA is nine, that gives you an hour. I'll be by later to check on you.” Al says, and with that Jay leaves the station. He drives home to what used to be his grandfather's home, a place he always loved growing up. He likes to believe that's why he left it to him, when he moved out. As he walks into the cabin, he's greeted with his Collie, Carly. He places the files on the counter, and says hi to Carly before he goes to take a shower. Once done, he throws a pair of sweatpants, for going a shirt until his guests arrives. He dives into the files his uncle gave him, and skims through them as he walks to his room. He sits them on the desk, as he sits on the chair next to it not taking his eyes off the paper. He’s almost through all the papers when his phone rings, and Carly tilts her head at it, as it vibrates next to her. He walks over to where he left it on the charger on his bed. Antonio’s flashing across the screen.   
“What's up Dawson?”   
“Can you come open the door, we're freezing out here.”   
“Yeah.” I say hanging up, and walking through the house to the front door. I open it to Antonio, and standing right next to him, is a beautiful and petite women, with dirty blonde hair, and hazel eyes. She stands there with two duffel bags, and a large German Shepherd.   
“Uh come in.” He says, opening the door a little wider, allowing for the three of them to walk in.   
“Jay Halstead.” He says as they get into the living room.  
“Erin Lindsay, and that is Chance, I hope you don't mind.” She says shaking his hand with one hand and pointing at her dog whose busy sniffing Carly, with the other.   
“It's cool, Carly will enjoy the company.”   
“Well I'll let you settle in, I'll see you around.”   
“Ok thanks Antonio.” She says as he makes his way back to the door, and leaves.   
“You're probably tired from travelling all day, I'll show you, your room.” He says, and picks up the duffel bag that she let drop to the floor. She follows behind him, as he shows her around, before opening the door to what he keeps calling her room. Her eyes widen, as she takes in the room that’s bigger than her whole apartment back in Chicago.   
“This room has it's own bathroom in the corner. If you need me I'll be just down the hall.”   
“Thank You.” She says, and he nods at her; leaving the room.   
She takes a shower, letting the hot water relax her. It seems to work, and when she shuts her eyes letting the water cascade down her face, she sees the blue eyes, and muscular torso, back, and arms of her new housemate. ‘Maybe this whole safe house thing won't be so bad after all’ she thinks to herself, as she steps out of the shower.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: I don't know if I should I continue this or not. Please review, let me know your thoughts.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you all for your interest in this story, I'm really excited to keep going, and I hope you all continue to follow along going forward. Enjoy!!!!  
XXXXXX  
Jay's POV   
After I showed Erin to her room, I hear the shower turn on while walking to go put a shirt on. Just as I'm about to turn the corner to the living room, there's a knock at the door. I groan as I walk back to the front door. Looking at Carly and Chance playing with each other in front of the couch. I open the door, expecting my uncle to be standing on the other side, but to my surprise it's Allie, my girl-ex girlfriend.   
“Allie what are you doing here?” I say as she pushes past me.  
“Did you get a new dog?” She asks pointing at Erin’s dog.  
“No.”   
“Then who's dog is that?”   
“You need to leave.” I say. Ignoring her question, and grabbing her arm; pulling her back towards the door.   
“Chance.” I hear from the guest room.   
“Shit.” I mutter to myself as Allie yanks her arm away from me, and walks to towards the room. Then Erin walks out, and they nearly run into each other. Erin stops, and takes a step back.   
“Who the hell are you?”  
“I uh I…”   
“I’m not even gone three days, and you find the nearest tramp to bring home?” Allie yells as she turns to look at me.  
“Excuse me?” Erin yells from behind her, and I walk forward and quickly grab Allie’s arm again. This time, I damn near drag her to the door.   
“Goodbye Allie.” I say as I gently push her out the door, and shut it behind her.   
“Look I'm sorry about her, she's-" I begin, but she stops me.   
“It's fine.”  
“I really am sorry.”   
“I've been called worse.” She says tucking a strand of her wet hair behind her ear. She bends down to pet the dogs, and starts talking to them quietly. I notice that she has dimples when she smiles after Carly licks her cheek. Her dimples only add to her beauty has I take in her pale skin, and tiny frame. She looks up then, and her stunning hazel eyes lock on mine briefly before I look away.   
“Uh can I get you anything? Something to drink or eat?”  
“No thank you, I just came out to get Chance.”  
“Oh ok.” I say looking down.  
“I'm sure this isn't your first choice for an assignment, huh?”   
“It's no problem.” I say, and she gives me a smile, and crinkles her nose a little.  
“Right, well goodnight.”  
“Goodnight.” I say back.   
“Come on Chancey.” She says, and he obediently follows her. I watch as Carly takes a few steps forward; stopping and tilting her head when the door closes lightly.   
“Let's go to bed Car.” I say to her, as I turn the living room lights out. And just as I'm about to go to the kitchen there's yet another knock. I turn on my heel to go open the door. I open it, and this time it's my uncle.   
“I really hope you're the last person that knocks on my door tonight.”   
“How's it going?”   
“Well if you don't count Allie just barging in here, and calling her a tramp, I'd say it's going ok.”   
“She asleep?”   
“I don't think so, she just took the dog into the room a minute ago. Do you want me to get her?”   
“No let her be. Look Jay, this is an assignment, and I'm counting on you to remain professional. You may be my nephew, but if anything happens between you two, I won't hesitate to get you get off the force.” He says, and I think about how his daughter, my cousin Michelle came about but I bite my tongue on that.   
“Keep it professional, got it.”   
“Did you read her files?”   
“Yeah most of them, is there anything I need to know that's not on paper?”   
“Not that I'm aware of.”   
“Alright.”   
“I just came to tell you that and I wanted to check in, see how things were going so far.” He says, and I nod.   
“We'll keep you updated on her case.”   
“Ok see ya uncle Al.” I say as he opens and walks out the door.   
I go to my room, and lay down. Turning on the TV, and leaving ESPN on. And at some point I fall asleep.   
XXXXXX  
Erin's POV   
I get woken up by Chance whining at the door. I rub my eyes, and then look at my phone for the time.   
“Chance what is your problem?” I say as I get out of the bed, and he stands up. I open the door, and find that Carly was laying down on the other side.   
“She's been laying there for the last hour.” I hear Jay say from the living room, and I nod.  
“I made coffee, but if you're not a coffee person, I can make tea, or there's orange juice.” He says getting up from the couch, and walking towards the kitchen.   
“Coffee's good, thanks.” I say, and within seconds he's handing me a mug.   
“Have you done something like this before?” I ask  
“Drink coffee? Yeah, a few times.” He says with a smirk, and light chuckle.   
“I meant this whole protective custody thing?”   
“No.” he says looking down briefly before looking back up at me.   
“How long have you been a police officer?” I ask, and he blushes, and gives me a look.   
“Three months.”   
“So that's how you got stuck with me?” I say with a little laugh, and gives me a grin.  
“And how long were you in the army?” I ask and I realize I've over stepped when his grin fades away.   
“I'm sorry, I saw the pictures on the dresser in the room, and I figured you saw my files. I... forget I asked. I'm sorry.” I say; shaking my head, and looking at the mug in my hands.   
“Do you want something to eat?”   
“Yeah, but I can get it.”   
“Do you like pancakes?”   
“Yeah.”   
“Alright I'll make some, and let you know when they're done.”   
“Ok.” I say taking my mug to the living room with me.   
XXXXXX  
“Breakfast is done.” He says about a half hour later; placing a plate on the breakfast bar as I walk over to it. He fixes himself a plate as I sit down on the stool.  
“Thank You.” I say after taking the first bite.   
“No problem.” He says as he sits down at the end of the breakfast bar. We don't talk for a good ten minutes, as we eat. He gets done before me, and walks back around the counter to get more. When he sits down again, I see him look at me out of the corner of my eye. I pretend not to notice as I finish the food on my plate, and get up to wash my plate.   
“Five years.” He says quietly, as I rinse my plate off.   
“What?” I ask; turning the water off.   
“I was in the army for five years.” He says just as quietly. My mouth opens and closes quickly, trying to think of what to say. I look down at the plate in my hand and grab the towel next to the sink to dry it off. I wipe the dark grey plate, and then I feel him come to stand next to me.   
“You don't have to be sorry, it's just not something that I talk about regularly.” He says, and I nod. He washes his plate, and utensils, and hands them to me to dry. Almost as soon as we're done, the front door opens, and the dogs bark for a few moments, before someone shushes them.   
“Jay who's big dog is-“ An older woman a little taller than me says as she comes into the kitchen. She has auburn hair, and the same striking blue green eyes as Jay, and I believe her to be his mother.   
“Oh honey, I didn't realize you still had company.”  
“I'm Annabelle, but everyone calls me Ms. Belle, I'm Jay's mom.”   
“Erin.” I say, extending my hand, and she shakes her head, and shocks me by pulling me into a tight hug.   
“I'm going to go take a shower. Thanks for breakfast Jay, and it was nice meeting you.”   
“You as well Erin.” His mom says, as I leave the kitchen.   
XXXXXX  
Jay's POV   
Once Erin is out of sight, my mom smacks the back of my head.  
“What was that for?”   
“Allie called me this morning. She said you kicked her out, and had some random girl here last night.”   
“Yeah I kicked her out, but it has nothing to do with Erin.”   
“Yeah? So why’d you break up with Allie, and who’s this Erin girl?”   
“You've never even liked Allie, and Erin's just staying here for a little while.”   
“No, but you really did at one point.”  
“She's just not the type of person I want to be with mom.”   
“I'm sorry honey.” She says stepping forward, and wrapping me in a hug.   
“But finally.”   
“Now about Erin?” She says as takes a step back, her hands on my shoulders.  
“She's under my protective custody.”   
“She what?” She all but yells.  
“Shhh, I can't tell you why, but she has to stay here until it's safe for her to go home.”   
“Did you thank you're uncle for giving this to you?”   
“No why would I, he's using it as a punishment.” I say; embarrassed and a little angry.   
“Three cars is a lot honey.”   
“Does everyone know about that?”   
“No just me and your aunt…..She's beautiful, and you are single now.” She says and I shake my head.  
“She is, and I am but she just got here last night, and we don't know how long she'll be here for. Plus nothing can happen between us. Uncle Al said I have to remain professional or I will no longer be a police officer.”   
“If you feel something Jay go for it, and I'll handle your uncle.”   
“I decided I'm going to go for a run with Chance before I take a shower.” Erin says walking back into the kitchen, with a pair of yoga pants, and a black hoodie on.   
“Ok mom, isn't the diner opening in like ten minutes?” I say looking down at my watch. My face becomes warm, and my palms start to sweat, as I wonder if she heard any of our conversation.   
“Erin wait I'll come with you.” I say as Erin turns to leave the kitchen.   
“I think I'll be ok.” She says not looking at me, at the same time I say  
“I'll see you later mom, and it wasn't a suggestion Erin.” As my mom gives me another hug.   
“See you Jay, love you.” My mom says as she leaves.   
“Love you too ma.” I yell as I walk past Erin and to my room to grab a jacket, and shoes. I walk back to the living room, and she's sitting on the chair tying her laces.   
“You don't have to come.”   
“I'm supposed to protect you, how can I do that if you're out there running by yourself, and you don't even no where you are. ”   
“I’ll find my way back, I wouldn't want you to feel anymore punished than you already do.” She says, but not angrily as she walks to the door, and leaves while I'm still getting my shoes on.   
“Erin” I yell; finishing getting my shoes on and I go outside but she's no where in sight.   
“Erin.” I yell again, not knowing what direction to go, just then my uncle pulls up.   
“What the hell’s going on?” He says as gets out of his car.  
“She ran off.”   
“What do you mean she ran off?”   
“Mom stopped by, and Erin said she was taking a shower, but decided to go for a run instead, and she heard me say that you gave this assignment to me as punishment. I told her I was coming with her, but she ran off before I could get my shoes on.”   
“Dammit Jay, she's been here for twelve hours, and you've already managed to piss her off, and lose her.” He yells as it starts to rain, he pushes past me and stomps to the guest room.   
“She left her phone.” He says when he comes back into the living room. We both pace inside, and make calls to the rest of the district. After about twenty minutes there's a knock on the door, and it's hard to distinguish it from the thunder booming outside. I go to open it even though it's unlocked, and I let out a sigh of relief when I see its Erin. I grab some towels, and blanket because she’s drenched. Uncle Al radios in that she’s back. But I can tell he's still pissed.   
“Look you don't have talk to him, or get along, or like him at all. But you will do as you're told when it comes to your safety. Not only was it beyond irrational for you to run out into unfamiliar surroundings, but you are here to be protected, and though its unlikely, you could have still been followed. Jay’s only job for the time being is to protect you. So you two need to figure something out to make this work. Understood?”   
“Yes.”   
“Good.” He says just before he leaves, letting the door slam behind him.   
“I'm sorry.” I say, but she doesn’t look at me, and pulls the towel tighter around herself. Her teeth are chattering and her lips quivering. She turns, and goes to her room.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: Please Review.


	3. Chapter 3

Jay's POV   
Two weeks, she's been here two weeks, and she hasn't said more than a couple sentences to me since the day after she got here. That night, she came out of her room to get something to eat, after locking herself in there for the day. I was sitting on the couch, and she came to stand a few feet away.   
“Look I know that I'm not here on vacation, or to have fun and make friends. I know that you have a job to do, and I’ll let you do it. I'll stay out of your way and won't be the burden I'm meant to be for you. I have money that I'll give to you for groceries, and whatever. I'm new to this too, so there'll be some adjusting on my part as well as yours, especially when it comes to listening to orders. Hopefully they'll find him, and I'll be out of your hair as soon as possible.”   
To say I was stunned would be a huge understatement. And by the time I snapped out of it, and was able to form the words I wanted to say she had already disappeared into her room again. Since then we've somehow figured out a good system without talking much.  
Today when I wake up, I go to the kitchen right away, and find that she's made breakfast for the third time this week. She's standing in front of the sink, and scrubbing one of the pans, her body shaking slightly with the movement of her arm. She's dressed in a pair of sleep shorts, and a tight long sleeve shirt, showcasing her perfect, soft curves. I gulp, and shake my head, as I walk to the counter, hoping my sweatpants hide what her body has done to me just now. She doesn't even acknowledge me as I pour myself a cup of coffee. I go to sit down at the table, and help myself. When we get done, we go to our rooms and get dressed for our run, that has become a part of our routine. Once we're ready, we walk to the back door, and I open it for her. She nods at me, walks out, and starts to stretch, while I let the dogs out. We both finish stretching, and then we start our run. We take a longer trail, and it takes us a little over a hour to get home, but she looks like she could still keep going despite her heavy breathing.   
I feel like I'm in the movie Groundhog's Day, as the day goes by just the same as the last fourteen. We take our respective showers after our run, and she stays in her room, as I tidy up the house, and make lunch. She comes out to eat, and then does the dishes, before going back. And then hours later dinner goes the same way.   
XXXXXX  
Erin's POV   
I wrap a blanket around my shoulders feeling a little chilled this morning, as I make my way to the kitchen. Jay is already there, having made omelets, he's seated at the table eating, and looking at his phone. While he's distracted, I take in his disheveled appearance. I think to myself that he gets more attractive as the days progress. He looks up at me momentarily then,   
“Good morning.” He says, with a little grin before looking back down.   
“Morning.” I say back, I sit down and start eating. He finishes before me, and goes to his room. When I'm done, I get up and put my plate, fork and knife in the sink. I then go to my room and get dressed.   
The trail we decide to go on is my favorite so far. It runs right along the river, the sound of the water is so relaxing, and at this time in the morning the sun hits it at just the right angle, making for an enchanting sight. I get so distracted that I don't pay attention to what's in front of me, and I hit a divot in the path. I roll my ankle and stumble forward, putting my hands out in front of me to catch myself. The twigs, and small pebbles mixed in with the dirt of the trail, scrape and scratch my palms. That pain is only a temporary distraction from the pain shooting through my ankle. I bring my knee up to my chest, and try to calm my breathing. At some point Jay realizes I'm not by him, and turns around. The look of confusion on his face is soon replaced by a look of concern and worry. He jogs back, and kneels down in front of me.   
“What happened?”   
“There's a divot in the path, and I wasn’t paying attention, and rolled my ankle. But I'm fine, it's fine, I just need a minute.” I say, and he goes to touch my ankle, but I pull away.   
“Stop moving and let me see.”   
“No I'm fine.”   
“I just want to look at it.”   
“No.” I say pulling my leg closer my chest.  
“My god you're stubborn, just let me look at it.” He says, and I pull up my right pant leg hesitantly, and he gently takes my calf in one of his hands, and the other one holds my foot up. I wince at that.   
“It's already bruising, you probably sprained it.”   
“I'm fi-"   
“Erin.” He says sternly; standing up and walking to squat next to me.   
“You ready?” He asks, with a smirk  
“Ready for wha-" I begin to ask but I don't finish before he's picking me up bridal style off the ground.  
“Jay put me down.” I say smacking his chest, but he doesn’t flinch, and continues to smirk.   
“It's a good half a mile to the cabin, and you shouldn't be putting weight on that ankle.”   
“I don't care, put me down.”   
“Hey, it's not my fault you're a klutz.” He says with a light chuckle.  
“I'm not a klutz.”   
“Ok.” He says; rolling his eyes.  
About half way back to the cabin, he looks down at me, and grins again.   
“You're enjoying this aren't you?”   
“Yeah, I find joy in people injuring themselves, and having to be carried a half mile back home… Come on, I know we've only just met, but what kind of guy do you think I am?” He says, his grin dropping, and I look forward instead of up at him.   
When I can see the cabin, he starts to talk again.  
“Kind of ironic though huh?”  
“What?”   
“We've spent the last two weeks pretty much avoiding each other as much as possible, and yet here we are.”   
“Yeah I guess so.” I say looking back up at him, and I see something in his eyes, something I haven't seen from him or anyone before. He sets me down, but keeps one of his arm around me, to keep me from putting weight my ankle. We walk, well he walks and I hop to the couch, and I sit down. I slide so I'm in the position to lay down. He props some pillows up near my feet, and slides them under my ankle. Then he disappears into the kitchen. I hear him talking to someone, and then he walks back into the living room; his phone pressed between his ear and shoulder, and he has a small towel, and a bag of ice.   
“Yeah, ok see you in a minute. Thanks Will.” He says into the phone, before putting it on the table. He wraps the ice in the towel before wrapping it around my swollen ankle. I hiss when he does.   
“My brother is coming to look at it.”   
“Jay I'm-"   
“Don't say you're fine.” He says almost angrily.   
“I'm ok.” I say, and he rolls his eyes.  
The silence that we've become accustomed to in the last two weeks, falls over us again, while we wait for his brother to arrive.   
It's only ten minutes before the front door opens. And in walks a guy a little taller but less muscular than Jay. His hair is the same color as Ms. Belle's but instead of the blue eyes that his mom and brother possess, he has deep brown eyes. He’s wearing a grin, that no doubt proves that they're brothers.   
“Erin this my brother Will. Will this Erin.”  
Hi.” I say to him.   
“Hi Erin.” He says; that smirk not leaving his face, as he walks over to the couch.  
“So I'm just going to take a look at your leg, and make sure nothing's broken.”   
“It's just a sprain.” I say  
“Right, well I'm just going to make sure.” He says as he takes the ice off, and he starts to poke, and prod at my ankle. He soon puts a compression wrap on it.  
“How long have you had the ice on?”   
“A little over ten minutes.” I say and he replaces the ice around my ankle.   
“I would ice it for about twenty minutes every hour or two. You shouldn't be putting any weight on it-"   
“Like I said.” Jay pipes in from his spot behind the couch. And Will shoots him a glare.   
“I brought some crutches with me and I'll bring those in, in a minute. Jay can get them adjusted to your height. It's very swollen, so keep it elevated. I'll come back in a week to check it out.” He says.   
“Ok thank you, but the crutches won't be necessary.”   
“Erin, it'll just make getting around the house a little easier.” Jay says and now its my turn to shoot him a glare.  
“I don't want the crutches.”   
“You really shouldn't be walking on it, and it'll be pretty painful to do so. I'll leave the crutches, if you change your mind.” He says getting up.  
“So stubborn.” Jay mutters as he walks to his room, and Will goes to get the crutches. When he comes back in he sets them by the door.   
“Ok well if you have questions, give me a call. It was nice to meet you.”   
“It was nice meeting you too. Thank you Will.” I say and he nods before walking to his brother's room.   
XXXXXX  
Jay's POV   
Will comes into my room a few minutes after me. He's got a knowing smile on his face.   
“Thanks Will.”   
“Yeah.” He says with a light chuckle.   
“What are laughing about?”   
“I find it funny how I only get a call from my little brother when his new girl gets hurt.”   
“She's not my girl.” I whisper, and he follows suit when he replies.  
“She's not?” He asks; raising his eyebrow.   
“No.” I say looking down.   
“But you want her to be?”   
“Will.” I say loudly.   
“Come little brother, look me in the eye and tell me you don't.” He says. I look back up at him, and shake my head.  
“I hate you.” I say   
“You can't deny it.” He says as he pokes his head out of the doorway, I'm guessing to see if she stayed put. “She's hot.” He adds when he looks back at me.  
“You can leave now.” I say pushing him out of my room and towards the front door. I look over at Erin, and see that she's fighting sleep, but I see the corner of her lips curl up slightly, when she looks over at us.   
“Bye Erin.” Will all but yells as I push him out of the door.   
“Bye.” She says quietly as I close the door.   
“Do you need anything?” I ask; walking away from the door.  
“No, thank you.” She says, and I nod.   
I make my way to my room, and let the dogs out, before going to take a shower.   
When I get out, I get dressed and ready to go to the store. Walking back out to the living room. I find that Erin has fallen asleep. She's positioned on her side her left leg is bent slightly, and tucked under her right one, which is starting to fall off the pillows. I walk over to her, and gently move her injured leg onto the center of the pile of pillows. She whimpers slightly, and her eyebrows furrow, causing some lines to appear on her forehead briefly, before they disappear. I go and grab the blanket off the back of the chair to the right of the couch, and cover her with it. I look at her in this peaceful state, and find myself wishing she’d give me a chance to get to know her. I get broken from my thoughts, with a light tap at the door. Chance growls, which causes Carly to do the same. I shush them, and they stop quickly, as I open the door for Antonio.   
“Hey man, thanks for coming.”   
“No problem.” He says as he walks in.   
“I'll be quick, maybe a hour or two, I just need to get groceries, and stop by the diner.” I say to him, and he nods; plopping down on the chair.   
I grab my jacket and keys; before heading out.  
XXXXXX  
Erin's POV  
I wake up to someone laughing. I blink a couple times, before rubbing my eyes. Then I look around and see Antonio sitting on the brown leather chair. He's got a smile on his face as he stares at the TV. I yawn, and then ask   
“Where's Jay?”   
“Nice to see you again too Erin.” He says with his smile not leaving his face; turning his head towards me.   
“I thought you'd welcome the chance to actually talk to someone, since I hear that you two don't do much of that.” He adds and I nod.   
“How long was I asleep?”   
“Well I've been here a hour, and you were already out when I got here."   
“Where did he go?”   
“He had some errands to run.” He says as I start to get up.   
“What are you doing?”  
“I have to go to the bathroom.”   
“Let me give you the crutches.”   
“What is it with you guys and those damn crutches?” I ask and he shrugs; getting up and grabbing the crutches from their spot near the door. He adjusts them and attempts to hand them to me, but I shake my head.   
“At least use one to help you hop.” He says, and I sigh; taking one.   
“Fine.” I stand on my left foot, and wobble a little before becoming steady.   
“Just don't fall.”   
“Thanks.” I say as I walk to the bedroom.  
I go to the bathroom and wash my hands before hopping back out to the living room. I sit back down on the couch, and prop my foot up on the pillows again. And then Jay walks in with what seems to be about twenty plastic bags.   
“You need any help?” Antonio asks  
“No thanks, I'm good.” Jay answers. Antonio closes the door, and then follows Jay to the kitchen. Antonio walks back into the living room not long after.  
“I have to go, but I'll see you later Erin.”   
“Ok bye Antonio.” I say looking over at him briefly before continuing to look through the cable guide.   
“Hey Erin.”   
“Yeah?” I say looking at him again.   
“Take it easy on him.”   
“Where's the fun in that?” I say, and he chuckles; shaking his head as he leaves.  
Jay comes into the living room around fifteen minutes later.   
“How's it feeling?” He asks.  
“Ok”   
“It looks painful.” He says as he slowly, pulls my pant leg up, and places the new bag of ice on my blue and purple skin. And I hiss again.  
“It is, more so when you touch it.” I say shutting my eyes.   
“Sorry.” He says, as I open my eyes again, and they instantly lock with his. There's that look again, that something I can't quite put my finger on.  
“Thank you.” I say as he finishes adjusting the towel and ice.  
“For what, the ice?” He says with a smirk, carefully repositioning the pillows.  
“Yeah for the ice.” I say sarcastically; chuckling briefly before becoming serious.   
“For everything.” I add and his eyes shoot up at me. I give him a smile, and he gives me one in return. He clears his throat as he averts his eyes elsewhere.   
“I uh, are you hungry?” he asks, rubbing his hands up and down his jean covered thighs. I nod, and ask  
“What are we making?”   
“We?” He questions  
“Yeah, we.”   
“We.” He says gesturing between us “aren’t making anything, you can stay here while I go warm up some of my mom's soup.”   
“You know I didn't break my femur Jay, I sprained my ankle, and I can help you.”   
“I appreciate that gimpy, but I'm just going to be warming it up on the stove, I think I'll manage.” He says and with that he stands up. ‘Take it easy on him’ I say to myself as I watch him leave the room.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: PLEASE REVIEW!


	4. Chapter 4

Jay wakes up and goes straight to the kitchen, when the smell of fresh bacon becomes too much of temptation. He doesn't bother to stop to put on a shirt. When he gets to the kitchen he’s surprised to see that Erin isn't there. He grabs some bacon off of one of the plates on the counter, before going to look for her. It has been almost two weeks since she sprained her ankle. And since then the two of them have started to talk a little more, and become a little more comfortable with each other.   
He peeks his head in her room, when he finds that she’d left it open. But she's not there either. He listens for the sound of running water coming from the bathroom, but it's silent. With that he continues to the living room, and then from there, back to the kitchen. That's when he sees her. She's sitting on the back porch, on one of the chairs surrounding the large table. Her back is to him, but he can see her look up, towards the water, and then back down at the table. He quietly makes his way outside, and slowly walks up behind her. The dogs both lift their heads up to look at him from their spot, where they lay side by side, next to Erin. He stops to watch them, as Chance lays his head back down, and then Carly scoots closer to him, and places her head on his neck. He smiles at the dogs as he takes the final steps to Erin. She’s drawing, well sketching. She's drawn the trees, the grass, the water, the whole scene in front of her is perfectly drawn out in various shades of grey on her paper. She tucks her hair behind her ear with one hand as the other puts the finishing touches on the picture. Her hair blowing in the early morning breeze a little. He thinks he's never seen anything, or anyone as beautiful as her in that moment.   
She feels his presence, feels him watching her. The gaze of his blue green eyes practically burning holes in the side of her face. But she doesn't let him know, not until she's almost done with her sketch.   
“Should I be creeped out or flattered that you came out here to stare at me?” She says with a smile as she sets the pencil down, and turns her head to look at him.  
“Definitely flattered.” He says with a smirk, throwing her a wink.  
“But I was actually looking at your picture, it reminds me of one my grandmother did once. She'd come out here, to draw or paint when she had free time.”   
“I don't blame her, it's beautiful here, I wish I would have brought my paint with me.”   
“Can I see it?” He asks, and she looks down at the pad before picking it up and handing it to him. He looks at it, truly looks at it, and it amazes him how much this one looks like his grandma's painting from almost this exact spot, years ago.  
“You're really talented.” He says to her, and she smiles, as a blush takes over her face.   
“Do you mind?” He asks, pointing to the pad. At first she doesn’t get what he's asking, but as he stands there, and looks at her expectantly she figures he's asking to look through the rest of the pages.   
She shakes her head and runs her fingers through her hair. He starts at the page of her most recent sketch, and works back. He finds one of her room, a few of Chance, some of them with Carly, and then he gets to one of him.   
She watches him, and his expressions as he flips through the pages. Then his expression softens, and she knows he's gotten to the sketch of him. It's just from his shoulders up, his head turned to the side, but he's smiling; wide enough that the lines in his cheeks are well defined, and his eyes are almost closed. She had drawn it the other night when she couldn't sleep, and the image of him laughing at something that was playing on the TV wouldn't leave her mind. He inspects the picture a little longer. In awe at how she managed to capture him. He continues to flip through the book, before handing back to her.   
“They're really good.”   
“Thanks.”   
“But should I be creeped out or flattered that you drew a picture of me?” He asks with a smile that matches the one in the sketch.   
“Oh definitely flattered.” She says with a laugh, giving him a wink, and he chuckles.   
“Should we go eat?” He asks after a few brief moments.   
“I guess.” She answers, pushing her chair out, and standing.   
He walks to the door, and opens it, allowing the dogs as well as Erin to go inside first, before he follows. They go to the kitchen and eat the plates of food Erin prepared for them. She gets done first, and takes her plate and utensils to the sink, and cleans them off. Then she goes to her room, and changes into some cropped yoga pants, and a long sleeve shirt. She walks back out to the kitchen, after putting her hair up in a pony tail.   
“Where are you going?”   
“We are going for a run, when you're done.”   
“I'm done but we're not going for a run.”  
“Why?” She basically whines, with this cute pout to her lips “It's been almost two weeks, I want to go for a run.”   
“You just stopped using the crutch yesterday, and its still bruised.”  
“Jay, I don't want to just keep sitting around here.” She says sternly  
“Then let's start with a walk.”   
“Fine.” She gives in after a couple minutes.  
“Ok I'll go get dressed, and then we can go.”   
A half hour later they're walking along a trail in the opposite direction of which they usually run. They walk slowly, she looks around here and there, and occasionally kicks a pebble or twig. Jay picks up some rocks along the way, dropping some that won't work. He flicks his wrist, and stands there; watching as one of the grey stones skips across the water. He continues to walk, and then stops when there's another big gap between the trees, and skips another two. She stops and watches as he does. He almost walks into her when he turns around.   
“Sorry.” They say at the same time, as he steps back.   
“Do you want to try?” He asks, holding out a rock, she nods her head, and her cheeks become pink. He hands her the rock, and she tosses it at the water. It once skips once before it sinks.   
“Here try it again, that wasn't the best skipping rock.” He says handing her another one. She does the same thing, but this time it immediately disappears beneath the water's surface. She looks so disappointed, and he tries to hide his smirk by biting his lip, but fails. So he searches the ground for more smooth, flat rocks.  
XXXXXX   
Erin's POV   
I can see his smirk as he bends down to get more rocks. He doesn't say anything as collects three or four more rocks from the ground. He hands me one when he walks back over to me, and he goes to stand behind me. He shows me how to hold it, and then places his rock in his pocket. That’s when he gently wraps his hand around mine. His touch sends an electric jolt through my body. He's so close that I can feel his breath against my ear, with every word he says. It makes my knees weak; they damn near buckle, and it sends a chill through my body. Then he backs away, and I feel cold.   
I flick my wrist like he said to, and the rock skips six times. It's something small, and simple, but it makes me feel giddy, or maybe it's his close proximity. I look around for more rocks, like the ones Jay described to me, when I hear something rustle the bushes a few feet away. Jay must of heard it too, as he quickly makes his way from the waters edge, and comes to stand protectively in front of me. He pulls his gun out, and points it down; slowly walking forward. I hold onto the back of his shirt, as he does. He steps on a twig and it snaps, and then a horse quickly makes it way through the brush.   
“Whoa easy, easy.” He says re-holstering his gun. He takes a few cautious steps towards the obviously anxious, and agitated animal.   
“Miller?” He questions as he gets close enough to touch the horse. I slowly walk to Jay, and stand closely behind him, not wanting to spook the horse.  
“So assuming you didn’t just name him Miller, I'm guessing you know him?” I ask after a few moments; once it appears like Jay had calmed him.   
“Well I did name him, just not in this second.” He says; smiling, and continuing to rub up and down the white blaze of the black horses face. He turns his head to look at me  
“He's one of my mom's horses.” He says  
“One of?”   
“Yeah, she's got eight.”   
“Wow.”   
“Yeah, she loves them, probably more than she loves Will and I. We should probably get him back.”   
“Is he just going to follow us there?”   
“No.”   
“So how are we getting him back?”   
“We'll ride him, it’s about two miles to my mom's.” He says, and I feel myself slowly back away from them.   
“Maybe I could just go back to the cabin.”   
XXXXXX   
Jay's POV   
I see that she's worried, maybe even a little scared at the suggestion of riding Miller to my mom's house.   
“Come on, it'll just be a half hour or so and then I can ask someone there to give us a ride home.” I say and she shakes her head, taking another few steps back, she looks down at her hands, almost as if she's ashamed. Then I think about it, and I wonder if she's ever experienced horse back riding before. I walk over to her, and stand in front of her.   
“Have ever rode a horse before?”   
XXXXXX  
Erin's POV   
My head snaps up in surprise, wondering if it was that obvious. I shake my head, and he nods, looking at Miller for a moment before looking back at me. He pulls himself up, onto the horse's back, and Miller just stands still. He holds out his hand, and gives me a smirk. I shake my head again.   
“I promise I won't let you fall.” He says, I hesitantly walk to them, and take his hand. I feel that electric jolt again  
“Put your left foot on mine, I'll pull you up, as you swing your right leg over.” He instructs, and we do as he says until I'm sitting in front of him on the horse. His muscular arms wrap around me, and he grabs some of the hair of Miller's mane. He makes this clicking noise with his mouth, and I feel him gently move his feet into the sides of Miller. My anxiousness melts away as Miller trots along the river, and Jay's arms tighten and flex at my sides.   
XXXXXX   
The ride is short, but it seems to relax them both. And he wonders if she realizes that by the time they get to his mom's farm, she's leaning back into him. He doesn't say anything about it, out of fear that she'll scoot forward.   
“See that wasn't so bad was it?” He asks as they get to the stables  
“No, it was nice.” She answers  
“Jay, where’d you find him?” An older gentleman says as he walks up to them.  
“About two miles south, along the river.”   
“We just fixed his stall, so he won't be able to kick it open again.”   
“Good” Jay says, after helping Erin off of Miller. The older guy, attaches a leash to the red head collar that Miller has on, and he leads him towards the stables.   
“Hey Joe, is my mom home?”   
“Yeah I think she just got home.”   
“Alright thanks.” Jay says  
“Thanks for bringing him home, your mom would have killed me if we didn't find him.” Joe says before walking away.   
The two of them walk side by side to the large farm house. They walk onto the white porch, and he opens the door for her. She steps into the house, and steps to the side letting him lead the way.   
“Mom?” He yells into the house.   
“In the kitchen.” She answers, and he walks down the hall, Erin following close behind him. She stops to look at the pictures lining the pale yellow walls. She smiles; seeing pictures of Jay as a kid, his freckles were more prominent, and his hair was longer and a few shades lighter in most of them. There's one where he looks to be seven or eight, and he's standing a few feet a away from a black and white horse, closely resembling Miller. She takes a few steps to the side, and finds one of him grinning ear to ear; missing his two front teeth. She keeps walking towards the kitchen, looking at the pictures of the Halstead family.   
She can hear Jay and Ms. Belle talking, but can't hear about what. She gets to the end of the hall, and walks up behind Jay; taking in the large white and grey kitchen.   
“Oh Erin, how are you sweetheart?” Ms. Belle says; smiling when Erin steps out from behind Jay. Then she's walking over and giving her a hug.   
“I'm good.” Erin answers.  
“That's good, so Jay's treating you alright, being a gentleman?” She asks as she backs away. Both women look over at Jay, who’s thrown his hand in the air, and shakes his head from where he's made his way to the other side of the kitchen island.  
“Yes, he's been a perfect gentleman.” Erin answers   
“Good.” Ms. Belle says as she walks to where her son stands; eating a banana.   
“So can you give us a ride home, please?” Jay asks  
“Yes of course.” She answers; grabbing her keys, and they all walk out to her car.   
It's only about ten minutes before they get back to the cabin, and Jay and Erin are both greeted by their excited dogs when they walk back into the house. They both go take showers, and Erin settles herself on the big leather chair in the living room. She turns on Friends, and laughs; having seen the same episode five or six times in the last two weeks.   
“Doesn't her sister loose Emma or something in this episode?” Jay asks as he walks into the living room.  
“She gets her ears pierced, and Rachel and Ross freak, and she says she wants to be a baby stylist.” She says, and he chuckles.   
“Right, well since you've seen every episode multiple times, why don't we watch something else?”   
“Like what? There's nothing else on.” She says as he starts looking the guide.  
He picks a documentary about penguins, and she laughs a little about his choice.   
“Really this is what you picked?”   
“What I like documentaries.”   
“I feel like I'm in one of my classes; watching a documentary.”   
“Classes?” He asks; turning his attention to her.  
“I'm a middle school art teacher….well I was” She says sadly.  
“What made you want to become a teacher?”   
“I wanted to teach kids in my old neighborhood, that whether they choose sports, writing, singing, or painting, they have options for an escape, other than drugs and alcohol. Something I wish I would have known when I was their age.” She says; looking down and fiddling with her hands; something he's noticed she does when she's nervous.   
“So you're teaching them to draw people without their knowledge, and creep them out.” He says with a laugh, in attempt to lighten the mood, and she smiles as she throws a pillow at him, which he dodges.  
“I'm kidding.” He says, and then there's a pause, before he adds  
“I don't know about everything that you've experienced, but those experiences made you who you are, and your students are lucky to have someone who's been in their shoes.” He says, and she looks up at him again, their eyes lock, like they have more and more over the last two weeks. He grins at her, before looking back at the TV. She looks at him for a few extra seconds; biting her lip, before she too turns her attention to the front of the room.   
To say she was bored would be an understatement, but she keeps her mouth shut, as she looks at how intrigued he is. It's why she lets herself fall asleep at some point.   
He doesn't know when she falls asleep, but he gets up, and drapes a blanket over her. He never thought of his beloved leather chair, as being overly large. But seeing her petite body curled up on it, makes it look huge, and her even tinier. His phone rings, and he quickly makes his way out of the living room; not wanting to wake her.   
XXXXXX  
Erin's POV   
I get an unnerving feeling that someone’s watching me while I slowly wake from my nap. My heart rate picks up as I blink the sleep from my eyes. Once I open them, and am able to focus, I see a little girl. She’s sitting on the couch, her auburn hair is up in pink tails, and her warm brown eyes are set on me. I give her a smile, and she gives me one in return. She hops off the couch, and walks over to the chair; sitting on the edge of it.   
“Hi.” She says   
“Hi.” I say back  
“What's your name?”   
“My name's Erin, what's your name?”   
“Mackenzie, but mommy and daddy and Owen call me Kenzie, and Mima Belle calls me bug, and Uncle Jay calls me Kenz.” She says, and I giggle at her explanation.   
“That's a very pretty name.”   
“You're really pretty, like a princess.” She says  
“Thank you, you're really-" I begin to say but I get cut off by Jay.   
“Kenz?” He says quietly a couple times. Her eyes go wide, and she covers her mouth before she's climbing onto my legs. I put my finger up to my lips, and say  
“Shh.” As I cover her with the blanket, Jay must have put on me. She giggles, her little feet sticking out at the bottom. He walks into the living room from the kitchen, and my breath hitches. He's shirtless; I've seen his bare chest and torso before, but this is different. This time there's beads of sweat and water making their way down his neck, over his muscular chest, and through the chiseled lines of his abdomen, before disappearing into the fabric of his athletic shorts, that are hanging dangerously low on his hips. The innocent sound of niece’s giggles break me from my not so innocent thoughts. He gives me another one of those grins that should be illegal, as he walks closer to us.   
“Have you seen a little girl? About this tall.” He asks; holding his hand up a little above his hip.   
“Hair’s in pink tails, she has a pink hoodie, jeans, and little pink socks on.” He adds, as he comes to stand right in front of us.   
“Little pink socks that are sticking out from under the blanket.” He says tickling her feet; causing her to let out a hardy laugh. He pulls the blanket off of her, and plucks her up. He tickles her belly then, and she giggles, and squirms.  
“Ewww Uncle Jay, you're sweaty.” She says, each word broken up with a little giggle. He laughs and looks at me.   
“I'm sorry, she pinky promised.” He says looking at her briefly. “That she wasn't going to wake you, my mom called and asked me to watch them for a little bit, shortly after you feel asleep.”   
“It's ok, she didn't wake me.” I say, and think about it did he say them?  
“My nephew, and his friend are out back, we were playing soccer.” He says as he could read my mind.   
“Oh ok, that makes sense.” I say, giving him a once over again.   
“Coach Jay, Owen can do it, he did it.” A boy probably around ten, comes running in; yelling.   
“That's awesome Gavin, I'll be right back out.” Jay says, and the boy runs back out of the living room.   
“You Kenz, should go back to coloring, or you can watch a movie in my room.”   
“Can Erin watch a movie with me?”   
“I don't know Kenz.”   
“I’d love to, what are going to watch?” I say excitedly, and give him a wink.   
“Brave.”   
“I don't think I've seen Brave before.”   
“Merida is my favorite princess.” She says excitedly.  
“Well I can't wait to watch it.” I say and he begins to walk towards his room; still carrying her. She starts whispering loudly in his ear.   
“Is Erin your girlfriend?” She asks, and he shakes his head; his smile still not leaving his face.   
“She's really pretty, like a princess.” She says just like she did to me, before.   
“I know.” Jay tries to whisper, but fails as I can still hear him, and I feel myself begin to blush.   
“You should ask her to be your girlfriend.” She then says  
“You think so, huh?” He says to her, and she nods.   
“I think you sound like your Mima, Kenz.” He says; gently placing her on his bed. He messes with the TV mounted on the wall, and pulls the movie out of the top drawer of the dresser just below the TV.   
“Uncle Jay can I color too?”   
“Yeah, I'll get your book in a minute.” He answers  
“I'll go get it.” I say, leaving the room.  
I go to my room first and grab my sketch pad, then go to the kitchen, and grab the crayons and coloring book off the kitchen table. I look out the large window, and see the two boys still kicking around soccer balls. I watch them briefly before heading back to his room.   
When I get there Mackenzie is sitting in the middle of bed, intently watching the screen. But I don't see Jay, then the door to the adjoining bathroom opens and he walks out.   
“I left the remote on the nightstand, if you need to adjust anything, and I already told Kenz to come get me if she needs anything.”   
“Or she can just ask me Jay, I'll be sitting right next to her, and I promise I can take care of her.”   
“Right, I just-" He begins  
“We'll be fine, if we absolutely need you we'll come get you.”   
“Yeah go play soccer uncle Jay.”   
“Ok, ok" He says, leaving the room.   
I sit down on the edge of the bed, and place the animal coloring book in front of her along with the box of crayons. She takes her eyes off the screen then, and looks at me, almost sadly.  
“Will you color with me?”   
“Of course, I love coloring.” I say, and she smiles again.  
“Do you want to pick a page?” She asks  
“You pick for me, I’ll be right back.” I say; getting up and going to the bathroom.   
When I come back, she’s still in the same spot but her crayons are scattered out in front of her, and she’s concentrating on the elephant on her page. I walk closer, and notice that she's chosen to color the usually grey animal a shade of purple, and it couldn't be cuter.   
“There's your picture, it's kind of like mine, but it has a mommy and daddy elephant and their baby, and the back has a pretty tiger.”   
“Thank you.” I say, sitting down next to her, and crossing my legs. I start color the page, the edge missing some chunks, where tore it out of the book. I occasionally looking at hers, and am amazed at how good it looks. Then I look out the window, and see Jay doing this trick with a soccer ball. He moves with ease; kicking the ball behind, up and over himself. He smiles after, clearly proud of himself. Then Chance and Carly come running over to him, and he kicks the ball; laughing as he tries to keep the ball from them, but in the end Carly gets it.  
Eventually Mackenzie, curls into my side, and falls asleep, her light snores, make me laugh. I finish coloring the second picture on my page, before opening my sketch pad.  
XXXXXX  
Jay's POV   
Around a half hour after I set the girls up in my room, my phone rings from the table on the porch. I run to pick it up, and answer it. Its my sister in law Natalie, letting me know she'll be here soon to pick up the kids. I tell Gavin and Owen, and they go inside, grabbing bottles of water for themselves, and then they come back out to get the soccer balls. I whistle, and the dogs come running to the porch, Chance is carrying the ball, and Carly is trying to get it away from him, both of them panting heavily. When I get inside, I fill the dog bowls, before heading to my room. I stop at the linen closet, and grab myself two towels, one for now, and one for after I shower. I then walk into my room, and find Kenzie sleeping, with her head on Erin's leg. Erin's too focused on drawing in her sketch pad to even notice my presence. I take in the stoic expression on her face, before my eyes travel down, and I notice how her position, and the way her shirt hangs low, shows the top swells of her breasts. I clear my throat, and refocus on the little mess my niece has in front of her. She looks up at me then, and sits up straight.   
“Hey.” She says.   
“Hey, sorry to interrupt but my sister in law is on her way to pick them up.”   
“Oh ok.” She says, as I walk over to the side of the bed, and gently shake Mackenzie's shoulder.   
“Hey Kenz, you have to get up, your mommy's coming to get you.” I say, but she just nuzzles further into Erin's lap.   
“Come on Kenz.” I say, and she scrunches her nose  
“No.” She whines, then I pick her up, just as I hear someone making their way to the room. Erin starts to pick up the crayons, and put them in them box.   
“You’re sweaty and stinky uncle Jay.” Kenzie says just as Natalie makes her way into my room.   
“Hey, there’s my baby.” Nat says as she walks further into my room.  
“Hey Nat.”   
“Hey Jay, thanks for watching them.” She says.   
“No problem, its been a while since I've seen them and it was fun showing Gavin and Owen some new soccer tricks before the season starts.” I say; giving Kenz a kiss on the head, before passing her to Natalie.   
“Mmhmm…..you must be Erin.” She says, turning to look at Erin, who has since finished putting the crayons in the box, and standing up off the bed.   
“Yes.”   
“Nice to meet you, I'm Natalie, Jay's sister in law.” She says, extending her hand out.  
“Nice to meet you too.” Erin says, shaking Natalie’s hand. Then she picks up the coloring book, and box of crayons, and goes to hand them to Kenzie.   
“Your picture's still in there.” She says, and Erin puts the book back down, and flips to the right page. She tears it out delicately, and places another page in its place.   
“Thank You, you did a very good job on it.”   
“What do you say to Erin?” Natalie says, looking down at her daughter.  
“Thank You.” She says  
“And what your uncle Jay? I colored with you too.”   
“Then you went to play soccer.” She says, causing both Nat and Erin to laugh.   
“Seriously though thanks to both of you, and I'll talk to you later.”   
“Ok bye Nat, bye Kenz.”   
“Bye.” Nat says  
“Bye Erin.” Kenzie says, and I throw my hands up in the air, as Nat turns to leave the room. I follow behind her to say bye to Owen, and Gavin before they all leave.   
I go back to my room, and find that Erin is standing in the same spot, but now she's holding her sketch pad. I walk over to her, and look down at the page. She's drawing Kenz sitting on the bed, coloring book in front of her, the crayons littered around her adding a pop of color. She's starts to laugh then.   
“What's so funny?”   
“Kenz was right, you do stink.” She says; looking up at me; scrunching and covering her nose.   
“I'll let you take a shower.” She adds; looking back down at the book, and attempting to step around me, but she trips on my foot. I turn and catch her before she falls to the floor. My arms stay wrapped around her, even after I help her to her feet and she stays pressed up against me. Our eyes flit between the others eyes and lips. And I don't miss the way she licks her lips as we slowly lean in.   
XXXXXX   
A/N: Thank you to those of you who have continued to review and let me know your thoughts on this story. It's nice to see that some of you are enjoying it. And your words motivate me to keep continuing. I hope you liked this chapter. Have a nice week, Much Love.


	5. Chapter 5

“I'll let you take a shower.” She adds; looking back down at the book, and attempting to step around me, but she trips on my foot. I turn and catch her before she falls to the floor. My arms stay wrapped around her, even after I help her to her feet and she stays pressed up against me. Our eyes flit between the others eyes and lips. And I don't miss the way she licks her lips as we slowly lean in.   
XXXXXX  
Erin pulls away then, just as their lips were about to meet, she steps back. Jay's arms falls from where they were wrapped around her, and his face shows a look of confusion, mixed with worry, or maybe sadness. She doesn't think much more of it as she turns  
“We can't, I’m sorry.” She says, and quickly exits the room.   
He just stands there, confusion, and shock, cementing him to the hard wood floor, freezing him in place. He can hear her door close lightly from down the hall. Eventually he goes to take a shower, he cleans his body, and massages the shampoo into his hair. Then he stands there under the stream, until the water runs cold. He gets out; dries off and gets dressed. He thinks about waiting until later to go to the kitchen to get something to eat and drink, but shakes his head, and heads down the hall.   
Once she heard his shower turn on, she decided to go make something to eat; hoping he wouldn't get done until after the food was. She pulls out a pizza, and throws it in the oven; before leaning against the counter, and bringing her hand up to her forehead. She can't believe they almost kissed, they were centimeters away from kissing. She likes him, she can't deny that, he’s attractive, and sweet, and caring, but she can't be with him. His job is to protect her, and they can't be anything. Can they? She thinks; getting lost in her thoughts until the timer goes off. She pulls the pizza out of the oven, and cuts it into eight triangular pieces. She takes two for herself, and places them on a paper plate. She puts the rest of the pizza near the back of the stove, not wanting the dogs to jump up and help themselves. Then she makes her way back to her room; closing and locking the door behind her.  
Her door is still closed, when he goes to get food and he debates knocking on it to talk to her, but decides against it, and turns into the kitchen.   
When he gets there he notices the pizza towards the back of the stove right away. He grabs the cardboard holding the remaining six pieces, and goes to the living room. He turns the TV on, and the intro to Friends pops up, and the screen illuminates the otherwise darkening room. He looks in the direction of the chair, with the blanket he draped over her earlier still laying across it, and then he looks over to her room. His eyes then cast down at the plate in front of him, as he grabs another slice, and he laughs at something Joey did on the screen. Once he finishes the pizza, he takes the cardboard circle to the kitchen to discard of it. He then goes back to the living room, where he soon falls asleep.   
When she walks out of her room later that night she finds him with his head tilted up, against the back of the couch. His mouth is agape, and he’s emitting light snores. His hands lay over his stomach, and his fingers are weaved together. She raises her eyebrow at how his legs are spread wide, and propped up on the coffee table. A smile ghosts her lips, as she walks to cover him with the blanket from the chair. She brings her hand up to run along his stubbly cheek, and he leans into her touch before she retracts her hand, not wanting to wake him.   
She tip toes to get herself a glass of water. On her way back to her room, she notices that he rearranged himself, and she giggles as quietly as she can. He looks even more uncomfortable than he did just moments before. She goes to set the glass on the nightstand, before going back out to the living room. She tries to gently maneuver him into a more comfortable position without breaking him from his slumber but she thinks she's failed when she sees his long eyelashes softly flutter against his freckled cheeks, but his eyes stay closed. She finishes adjusting the pillow, that’s now behind his head. And pulls the blanket up higher on him, before she turns to go back to her room.   
“Thank you.” He says quietly. She thinks she imagined it, especially when she turns her head to look at him again, and his eyes are still closed. But then he blinks, and his blue green orbs open and look back at her, and she turns her body completely to face him.  
“You've done it for me before.” She says; taking a few steps.  
“Can we just pretend that, that didn't happen?” Jay says; sitting up a little.   
“What, me covering you up?” She asks with a smile, but he gives her a stern look.   
“Earlier….I just.. I don't want to go back to not talking to you, especially not because you're mad at me.” He says, his voice still cloaked with sleep, this time he’s the one to look down at his hands nervously.  
“I'm not mad Jay.” She says; running her fingers through her hair. “I wanted it too, but-” She adds hesitantly, and his head whips up before she pauses. “but we-"  
“We can't.” He cuts in and says almost bitterly. “I got that before.”   
“Now who's the one that's mad?” Erin says.  
“I'm not mad, I just-" He begins, but then there’s a pregnant pause.   
“I don't want to be the reason you loose your job Jay.”   
“I'm not worried about that.” He says, raising his voice, causing her to flinch.  
“Well at least one of us should be.” She yells back, and with that she turns and goes back to her room.  
“Erin wait.” He says, getting up quickly, but he's not fast enough as she closes the door in his face.   
“Erin, I'm sorry.” He says against the door.   
She doesn't say anything, even as her frustration continues to bubble. She paces back and forth in front of the bed. She seems to calm slightly when she hears his retreating footsteps. She goes to grab her phone, and dials the number on the card given to her on her first day here. He picks up after the second ring. She doesn't tell him everything, but he agrees to her proposition. They end the call, and she grabs one of the duffel bags she came with, and packs.   
XXXXXX   
Jay's leaning against the counter; nursing a cup a coffee when she walks into the kitchen.   
He has a confused look on his face when he sees the duffel bag slung over her shoulder.   
“I talked to Antonio last night, and he agreed to me staying with him and his family for a few days.”   
“You don't have to do that.” He says sadly   
“I know, but I think its best Jay. We’ve been locked in here together for a month, and I think we just need a little break from each other for a few days.” She says just as sadly. Both of them have become accustomed to their little routine, and each other's company.   
“Can Chance stay here though? Antonio said his son is allergic.”   
“Yeah, he can stay.” He says, giving her a weak smile; pushing the ‘You can stay.’ Out of his head. If she wants to leave, then he's not going to stop her, even though it's not what he wants.  
“Thank you.” She says, and with that she leaves.   
Once he hears the front door close, he turns around and slams his hands down on the granite counter.   
XXXXXX  
The next day Jay goes into the district. He sits in his truck for a few extra minutes; trying to prepare himself for the wrath of his uncle. When he walks in, he feels it coming, feels his uncle and sergeant’s gaze on him the minute he enters the bullpen. But to his surprise, he doesn't get yelled at to come to his office, and the lecture doesn't come. Instead his sergeant comes out, and tells Burgess, Ruzek, and Atwater to get him caught up.   
The next couple days go the same, as he gets back into the groove of the job, but even with the distraction of work, he can't seem get her off his mind. It doesn't go unnoticed as Friday rolls around, and Al sees his nephew staring off into space, much like he's done throughout the week. Jay would eventually shake his head, and refocus on the paperwork in front of him, but not this time. Al calmly stands from his chair, and walks to the door. He calls Jay's name a few times, before finally getting his attention.   
“A minute?” He says, and Jay just nods, and he stands from his desk, and walks to the office; closing the door behind him.   
“So you want to tell me what's going on?”   
“Not particularly, but I’m guessing that was a rhetorical question.” Jay answers, and Al nods.  
“Start with why she asked to stay with Dawson for a few days.”   
“I was watching Kenz, and Owen, and Nat had just come to pick them up. And after they left, we-"   
“I thought I made it clear that you were to keep it professional with her.”  
“We didn't do anything, and that's the problem uncle Al, I like her, but ended up arguing about her not wanting to be the reason I loose my job. That’s why she left.”   
“Alright, well I'll make arrangements for her to stay with someone else, but she'll stay with me this weekend while the Dawson's go to Chicago.”  
“But-" Jay begins  
“You’re dismissed.” He says, Jay goes to argue, but the phone rings. He groans, and exits the office. Another hour goes by, before they're all told to go home.   
“Hey man, you up for Lottie's tonight?” Ruzek asks as the four young officers walk out of the district.   
“Nah, I'm going to stop by the diner, and then head home. Maybe another time.”   
“Right, well if you stop sulking over your girl, we'll be at Lottie's.” Adam says with a chuckle, and Kim smacks his arm.   
“Got it.” Jay says as he picks up his pace, to walk away from his colleagues.   
XXXXXX  
“Jay!” An elderly lady says from the first booth to the right of the diner door.  
“Hi Mrs. Ramsey, how are you?” Jay asks with a fake smile, as he walks over to the side of her.   
“Mr. Ramsey.” Jay adds with a nod of his head, looking at the older gentleman sitting across from her and he gets a nod in return.  
“I'm doing fine, thank you. I haven't seen you in a while. Have you lost weight?” She says, causing Jay to laugh.   
“No ma'am, I don't believe so.” He says, his eyebrows knitting together briefly, his weak smile not leaving his face.  
“Margie stop bothering the poor kid, and let him do what he came here to do.” Mr. Ramsey says.  
“I'm not bothering him Stan, am I bothering you dear?” Mrs. Ramsey asks.   
“No ma'am.” Jay answers.  
“See Stan.”   
“Well of course he's not going to tell you that you're bothering him Margaret, his mother raised him well.”   
“Or maybe I'm not actually bothering him Stan.” She says  
“You're bothering me.” Mr. Ramsey mumbles.   
“What was that Stan?”   
“Nothing dear.” He replies   
“Well Jay dear, it was nice seeing you, you take care.” She says   
“Yes ma'am, you too.” He smiles, as he walks away.   
He walks around the long counter, and goes to the little office to the left. He knocks on the open door, and his mom turns her chair around.   
“Oh hi Jay honey…where's Erin?” She says, her warm smile quickly turning into a frown as she looks around him.   
“Uh, you needed me to fix some things?” He says trying to avoid her question.  
“Jay.” She says sternly  
“I don't want to talk about it, please?” He says, and she sighs.  
“There's a light in the women's restroom that needs to be replaced as well as two in the hall, and this door knob needs to be fixed.”   
“Anything else?” He asks  
“Do you have plans on Sunday?”   
“No, why?”   
“Your brother, and uncle are coming to the farm to help your grandfather rebuild the corrals and the fence.”   
“I'll be there.”   
“Thank you.” She says  
He goes about, doing the tasks his mother asked him to do before he heads home.   
XXXXXXX  
Erin sits on Al and Meredith's couch; where she had slept the night before. She has her knees pulled up to her chest, and her sketch pad sitting on top of her legs. She's not drawing anything specific, and if you were to ask her what it was, she'd tell you it was nothing. The picture just has this flow about it though, she continues to add lines both squiggly and straight until she hears a knock at the door. Al's younger teenage daughter, Michelle comes running into the living room, and opens it. In walks Natalie, with a seemingly very sleepy Kenzie in her arms, and Ms. Belle close behind her. It is the day of Hayfield High's Spring Fling dance, so she understands the excitement, well kind of, and Al did warn her last night that the women of their family would be coming over today to help his two daughters get ready for the dance tonight. While Erin's thinking, Kenzie notices her, and squirms out of her mother's arms to come sit next to Erin.   
“Hi Erin.” Kenzie says   
“Hi Kenz.”   
“How come you're not at uncle Jay's house?”   
“Mackenzie.” Natalie says sternly  
“Hey Kenzie, how about we go look at the nail polishes and pick out what color you’re going to get on?” Michelle says  
“Ok.” She says almost sadly, she gets up from her spot next to Erin, and goes with her cousin, Natalie following behind them.   
“Hey sweetheart, how are you?” Ms. Belle asks as she walks over to take a seat on the coffee table in front of Erin.  
“Hey, I'm ok.”   
“Well I know we've only met a handful of times, and I know neither of you want to talk about what happened, but you can come talk to me, whenever. Ok?”   
“Ok, thank you.” Erin says.   
“Alright, so are you partaking in the chaos today?” She says with a little laugh, nodding in the direction of the stairs.  
“Um no, I figured I’d only get in the way.” Erin answers  
“Nonsense, if you want you can come help us too.” She says, just as there's another knock on the door. Except this time the door opens, seconds after, and a young brunette women walks in, with two trays of coffee.   
“Good morning Ms. Belle.” She says cheerfully.  
“Good morning Kim.” Ms. Belle says, scooting over so Kim can put the trays of coffee down. Then she pulls a paper bag out of the large tote she has slung over her shoulder.   
“Erin right?” Kim asks, her deep brown eyes looking at Erin, and Erin nods.  
“I'm Kim, Al's my sergeant, and he's kind of like my pseudo uncle. I got you a coffee too, sugar and creamer are in the bag.” She says quickly.  
“Thank You.” Erin says. Ms. Belle calls for the four women upstairs to come get their coffee, and the living room soon becomes filled with all the women, and Kenzie goes to sit on Erin's lap.   
“Can you paint my nails please?” Kenzie whispers into Erin's ear, and Erin laughs, and whispers   
“Of course.” To her.   
They all go back upstairs to the girl's room. Erin and Kenzie sit on the floor, and look through the nail polish until Kenzie finds the colors she wants. While Meredith, and Ms. Belle set to do Lexi and Michelle's hair, and Natalie and Kim do their make-up. When Erin gets done with Kenzie's nails, the little girl squeals in excitement, and runs over to show everyone.   
“Erin can you do our nails too please?” Lexi asks  
“Yeah, do you have your colors picked out?”   
“They're on the desk, the mint color is mine, and the coral color is Michelle's.”   
“Ok.” Erin says; grabbing the bottles, and walking over to where everyone is. She sits down in front of Michelle, and Kenzie sits in Erin's lap.   
“Kenzie, Erin needs a little space.” Natalie says, and Kenzie shakes her head, turning and burying her face into Erin's hoodie, and Erin feels her little hands tightly gripping the back of her sweatshirt.  
“She's ok.” Erin says, looking up at Natalie, and giving her a smile.   
XXXXXX  
“Did she fall asleep?” Natalie asks, after about twenty minutes, looking down at her daughter still clinging to Erin, and then Kenzie lets out a cute little snore, as if to answer her mother's question. Everyone erupts into a fit of laughter. The seven women talk and laugh for hours leading up to Michelle and Lexi leaving to go to their dance.   
Erin falls asleep early, and Al gets her up early on Sunday morning so they can go to Ms. Belle's.   
XXXXXX  
Jay decides to go for a walk when he can't sleep. He picks his phone up off the nightstand to check the time, seeing that it's a little after five. It's still dark out, when he attaches a leash to Chance's collar; not knowing if he'd stay next to him, like Carly, or if he'd take off. And he's glad he did when he sees a coyote as they step just outside the gate to his back yard. It's big; bigger than Carly and if he didn't know any better he'd think it was a wolf, but the build tells him it's not. The three of them stop, and let the animal have it's space. Chance and Carly both growl, and bark, and it soon disappears. Jay gives it a few extra minutes before they start their walk.   
By the time they make it home, the sun is rising. Jay lets Chance off the leash once they walk into the back of the house, and both of the dogs walk to get a drink of water, while he goes to start a pot of coffee. He pulls out two mugs, and then reminds himself that she's not staying here anymore, and he puts one back. Once he finishes his coffee, he goes to his room, and gets dressed. He then grabs his phone and keys; giving the dogs each a pat on the head before he leaves.  
XXXXXX   
Almost as soon as Erin walks into Ms. Belle's grey and white farm house she's being enveloped in the older women's arms. And Erin having never been fond of hugs doesn't seem to mind.   
“I just made a fresh pot of coffee, or if you'd like to go back to sleep, you can use the guest bedroom, which is down this hall and to the right, or I can get out some pillows and a blanket, if you'd prefer to be in the living room. Help yourself, and make yourself comfortable, sweetheart.” Ms. Belle says.  
“Thank you Ms. Belle.” Erin replies; making her way to the couch, with her sketch pad in her hands.  
XXXXXX  
Jay walks into his mom's house, he goes to the kitchen; assuming that's where his mother will be. When he walks past the couch, he sees something; someone out of the corner of his eye move. He turns his head to the side, and sees Erin curled into the arm of the couch. Her sandy blonde hair is covering most of her face, but he can still see that her eyebrows are furrowed, and she has a slight pout to her lips. He leaves her be and continues on down the hall.  
“Hey gramps, uncle Al.” Jay says as he steps into the kitchen. He walks over to his mom, and gives his mom a kiss on the cheek.   
“Morning ma.” He says to her  
“Good morning Jay.” She says, as the three men walk out the back door.  
XXXXXX  
Erin's still rubbing the sleep from her eyes when she enters the kitchen a few hours later.   
“How'd you sleep honey?” Ms. Belle asks when she notices Erin walk in.  
“Good, thanks. Can I help you with anything?”   
“Would you mind taking these to the boys, and telling them that lunch will be ready in twenty minutes?” Ms. Belle gesturing to the tray of iced tea.   
“Sure.” Erin replies, picking up the tray.   
She walks out the back door, and sees Jay's grandpa, uncle, and brother standing near the fence a few yards behind the house. She walks over to them, and they each thank her, before grabbing a glass, and she tells them when lunch will be ready.   
“Where's Jay?” She then asks, and they all look at her each wearing a grin, before Will answers   
“He's at the stables, I can take this to him, if you-"   
“I got it, thanks though.” She says cutting him off.  
“Alright.” He says putting his hands in the air briefly in mock surrender, and she grins at him, and walks towards the stables.   
The sight she sees when she gets to the stables, robs her of her breath, she feels herself start to sweat, and the feeling familiar throb between her legs. Jay's standing against one of the red and white barn doors; drinking a bottle of water; his arm looks like it'll rip through the sleeve as it flexes. His black baseball cap is backwards, a white t shirt hangs out of one of his back pockets, his blue and black short sleeve flannel is open and his sweaty, god like chest and torso is exposed, much like they were last week. The thin line of dark hair that disappears under his jeans, seems to stand out more in the mid day sun. The weight of the light tan, leather tool belt he's wearing is pulling his jeans down low. She unconsciously licks her dry lips, as his eyes lock with hers. He grins and walks over to her.   
“Hey.” He says  
“Hey, um your mom asked me to bring these, well uh this out to you guys, and uh tell you that lunch will be ready soon.” She says nervously, her voice cracking slightly, and she feels the heat rise in her cheeks.   
“Thanks.” He says, and she nods; turning to walk back to the house.   
“Wait, I'll walk with you.” He says after finishing his glass of iced tea. When he gets next to her, their shoulders brush up against each other's.   
“So uh, how you've been?” Jay asks as they near the house.   
“I'm ok, you?” She answers  
“I'm ok too I guess.”   
“Aww do you miss me?” She says teasingly, a huge smile on her face, and he smiles back thinking ‘More than you know, and more than I'm comfortable admitting.’   
“No, honestly I just miss your coffee, and omelets.” He says, and she laughs and shoves him softly.  
Al, Ms. Belle, and their dad stand at the kitchen window; watching the young pair, laugh and smile at each other as they slowly make their way back to the house.   
“I don't think I haven't seen him smile like that since before he left, if ever. They remind me of you and mom, pop.” Ms. Belle says.   
“I know what you're trying to do Belle.” Al says.   
“What's that Al?” She says loudly  
“Don't make me out to be the bad guy, it's against the rules for them to get involved like that”   
“Cause you've never done anything that was against the rules, what about Michelle's mother? That was against the rules, but it gave you Michelle… Or even further back what about you and Meredith? her dad didn't want you anywhere near her, yet you have this beautiful life with her all these years later.” She yells   
“That's different, and you know it.” Al counters  
“How so?”   
“Alright that's enough.” James says, his voice booming through the house.  
“Your sister's right Alvin, and you know it. I know it’s not against protocol, it'd be no different than if she put under his protective custody after they started dating. Did you ever think that if they were together that maybe she'd be even more protected. Let the kids be for Christ’s sake.” James says sternly, and Al thinks about his father's words, just as Erin and Jay walk into the house.  
“What's going on?” Jay asks  
“We can talk after lunch.” Ms. Belle says.  
“Yeah let's eat.” Will says, coming from the living room, rubbing his hands together, and grabbing a plate. Everyone gets their food, before heading to the table.   
“So Erin what do you do?” James asks, after eating a few bites.  
“I'm a middle school art teacher.” She says, and Al, Belle, and James all look stunned. All three of them thinking back to Belle's statement about them reminding her of her mom and dad, even more so now knowing that she's a teacher and he's a cop just like his grandpa. The six of them make small talk in between bites. When they’re done, Ms. Belle goes to the kitchen to continue working on dinner, while Will and James go back to working on the fence. Erin's the last one to get done, and when takes her last bite she pushes her chair out,  
“I'm going to help Ms. Belle with the dishes.”   
“Erin I need to talk to you for a moment.” Al says, and Erin sits back down. Jay was just about to get up, when his uncle looks at him.  
“You too.”   
“Look Uncle Al, if this is about what I told you on Friday-" Jay begins  
“Listen I’m only going to say this once.” He says before letting a big sigh “I was wrong, and I just need to know that you're going to have her back Jay.” Al finishes, and it's Erin and Jay turn to be stunned. They look at each other and then back at Al.   
“Of course.” Jay answers, and Al nods.   
“Alright well we should probably go finish helping your brother and grandpa.” Al says, as he gets up.   
“So will you come back to the cabin now?” Jay says with a smile, after a few moments.  
“I mean I have to come back at some point and pack the rest of my clothes.” She says, and watches his smile fall. Erin doesn't say anything else, she just gives him a wink, and a smile. She grabs their dishes, and takes them to the kitchen, while Jays go back to work outside.   
“Oh Erin, sweetheart you don't have to do that.” Ms. Belle says as Erin starts to do the dishes.   
“It's no problem, thank you for lunch.” Erin says.   
“You're welcome, and thank you dear.” Ms. Belle answers, and just then Erin sees Jay get hit in the head with the wood plank Will was carrying. They could actually hear the crack of the wood meeting his face, from in the kitchen. Jay's holding his hand to his forehead. Will quickly puts the wood plank down, and walks to his brother, moving his hand away. Then they're walking to the house, and then they're in the kitchen. Jay has blood running down the side of his face. Ms. Belle grabs a hand towel, and walks to put it to Jay's face.   
“What happened?” Ms. Belle asks  
“Genius here wasn't paying attention, and walked right into the plank I was carrying.” Will says; pulling the towel away briefly to look at the cut on his brother's temple.  
“What? You swung it around.” Jay snaps back.  
“Whatever you say Jay.” Will says  
“Is he going to need stitches?” Ms. Belle asks   
“Just butterfly stitches, it's not that deep.” Will answers  
“I'll go get another towel.” Ms. Belle says  
“We're going finish the fence.” Al says and James follows him back outside.   
“I’ll have to go to the store to get the butterfly stitches.” Will says  
“I'll come with you, I need a few things for the house that I forgot to grab yesterday.” Ms. Belle says, walking back in, and handing Erin the towel, and then the mother and son leave.   
“So you were so distracted, that walked into it huh?” Erin teases after a few minutes.  
“I was distracted…” He says giving her a look. “But I didn’t walk into that plank, he swung it around.”   
“Sure.” She says  
“I'm serious” He says, with a hiss as she replaces the bloody towel with the clean one, and holds it in place.  
“Oh I totally believe you.” She says raising her eyebrow.  
“So are you going to actually answer my question now?” He asks  
“Did you get hurt just so I'd feel bad for you, and come back to the cabin.”   
“It depends, is it working?” He says, as she pulls the towel away to see if the bleeding has stopped, which it has.  
“Maybe.” She says as she takes the towel away from his face, and he turns his head towards her while she's still looking at the cut. Their faces even closer than they were just days before. They look down at the other's lips, and back up, they smile at each other, just before their eyes close, and their lips meet.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: PLEASE REVIEW!!!!


	6. Chapter 6

“Maybe.” She says as she takes the towel away from his face, and he turns his head towards her while she's still looking at the cut. Their faces even closer than they were just days before. They look down at the other's lips, and back up, they smile at each other, just before their eyes close, and their lips meet.  
XXXXXX  
Jay's hand comes up to cup her jaw, and one of Erin's lays gently on his chest, and then makes its way up to his neck. Their lips move against each other's, and they gradually deepen the kiss. They’re forced to pull apart, when their lungs start to scream for air. His hand stays on her jaw, and he slowly runs his thumb over her dimple as she smiles at him. Then he notices that they're not alone. Erin looks down, her cheeks become red; while he turns his head to look at the other person.   
“Hey ma.” Jay says  
“Hey honey.” She says; walking around the kitchen island.   
“Erin you don't have to be embarrassed sweetheart, as long as you two don't have sex in my kitchen, or in my house for that matter, we'll be ok.” She adds with a smirk, and Erin backs away from Jay, and sheepishly looks up at his mom.   
“Mom!” Jay says, and now it's his turn to be embarrassed.   
“Just setting some ground rules, now go to the wash room, so your brother can clean that cut, and address it.”   
“Yes ma’am.” He says, as he stands, and pecks Erin's temple before going to the bathroom.   
“Erin, would you mind peeling these please?” Ms. Belle asks, pointing to the bowl of potatoes on the kitchen island, and Erin shakes her head, and walks to wash her hands in the sink. Once she's done she starts to peel the skin off of the potatoes, and at some point Will and Jay come back out.   
“We're going to go back out and finish up before it gets dark.” Will says   
“Dinner will be ready by the time you get back, did you talk to Natalie?”   
“Yeah they should be here soon.”   
“Ok.” She says, and then they leave.   
XXXXXX  
A hour and a half later, and Ms. Belle's farmhouse is filled with their family and friends. And the Halstead men, just got done with the fence. The four men leave their tool belts on the porch, before going inside, and washing up.   
“Uncle Jay!” Kenzie says excitedly from Erin's arms.  
“Hey Kenz.” He says walking over to where Erin is standing against the wall of the kitchen, near the dining room.   
“What no hi for your dad?” Will says, after giving Nat a kiss.   
“Hi daddy.” Kenzie says just Erin passes her over to Jay, and he tickles his niece, before giving her a kiss on the cheek, and then sets her down.   
“Come on, I'll go introduce you to my friends” Jay says to Erin; taking her hand.  
“Ok.”   
They walk into the dining room, and over to the two couples sitting at the table.   
“Hey guys this is Erin, Erin this Adam Ruzek, and his finance Kim Burgess.”   
“Nice to see you again Kim.” Erin says.   
“You guys know each other?” Jay questions, looking at Erin.   
“Yeah, we met at Al's yesterday.”   
“Oh ok, well anyways this is Hailey, and her husband Kevin Atwater. Kev, Kim, and Adam work in the unit, and Hailey is Hayfield's veterinarian.”   
“Nice to meet you Erin.” Kevin and Hailey say in unison.  
“I'm glad to see you to made up, I couldn't watch him mope around like a lost puppy much longer.” Adam says, Erin giggles, and Kim punches his chest.   
“Shut up Adam, I was not moping around.” Jay defends.   
“Bro, you kind of were.” Kevin pipes in.   
“Ok, let's go get some food.” Hailey says, and the four of them leave the room.  
“So you did miss me?” Erin says.   
“Maybe.” Jay says, smiling down at her, and just as he was leaning in, Kenzie runs into Erin's leg.   
“Hey Kenz.” Erin says with a chuckle as she looks down at the little girl.  
“Mima Belle said to come to the kitchen.” She says sweetly.   
“Ok thanks Kenz, we'll be right there.” Jay says, hoping his adorable niece will run back to her parents, but instead she grabs Erin's hand, and gives it a tug. Erin laughs as she follows her to the kitchen. She looks back at Jay, and smiles as if to say sorry, and he can't help smile back at her. He loves that his family already likes Erin so much.   
They get their food, and squeeze around the large, white, wooden table.   
“I want to sit next to Erin.” Kenzie says to Natalie, and Natalie switches places with her daughter, so Kenzie's in between her and Erin. Everyone eats, and then the women, along with Al and James stay seated while, Kevin, Adam, Jay, Will and Owen all go to put food away, and clean the dishes.   
Will, and Natalie eventually take the kids home, and not too long after Al and Meredith leave too.  
“Erin, you staying?” Al asks, and she looks at Jay; he shrugs at her, with a smile on his face.  
“Yeah, I'll stay.” She answers, looking back up at Al, he just nods, before he leaves.  
Ms. Belle tells them all good night, and tells Jay to lock the house up when they leave, before she heads to her room.   
“Hey Jay, Erin you want to go to Lottie's with us for a drink?” Adam asks, and this time Jay looks at Erin for an answer, she gives him a grin, and raises her eyebrow at him, before she shrugs like he did to her.  
“Sure.” He says as they get up. Hailey and Kevin, and Adam and Kim take their own cars, as Jay and Erin turn everything off, and lock the house, before they head to Jay's truck. When they get to the navy blue Bronco, she stands in front him, and puts her hand out.   
“What?” He asks, quirking his eyebrow at her.  
“I'm driving.” She says  
“No you're not.”   
“Jay I promise I won't crash your truck.” She says, reaching for the keys in his hand, and he lifts them above her head, so she has to jump. She can't reach them, so she resorts to pouting; curling her bottom lip slightly, tilting her head down, and batting her eyelashes. He can't resist, and he leans in to give her a kiss.   
“Fine.” He says, handing over the keys, giving her a little pout of his own as he walks around the truck.   
“Hey from what I heard your truck is better off with me behind the wheel.”   
“Haha very funny.” He says, before starting to tell her where to go. They get to Lottie's quickly, and when they walk in they instantly spot the two couples near the back of the bar. Both to of them oblivious to the fact that someone was watching them as they make their way back. They also don't notice that same person leave once they get their drinks and engage in conversation with their friends.   
“So Erin, I hear you're a teacher?” Hailey says before taking a drink of her soda.   
“Yeah.”  
“I'm just going to go to the restroom.” Jay says, and Erin nods.   
“What subject?” Kevin asks  
“Uh I teach art.”   
“You don't look like any art teacher I've ever seen.” Adam says, and Kim elbows him.   
“How many art teachers have you actually met Adam?” Hailey asks as the whole table laughs.   
“Two, and they're both old and weird, and definitely didn't look like you.” He says looking at Erin, and Kim gives him a glare, but they all laugh it off.   
“So you're a vet Hailey?” Erin asks  
“Yeah I've always loved animals, and my aunt Trudy was a vet, she was the reason I wanted to go into the field.”   
“If I didn't become a teacher I wanted to become-" Erin starts to say, but stops short when she feels someone tap her shoulder.   
“Don't think I've seen you ‘round here before, you're hot, mind if I get you a drink?” The guy slurs at her as she turns around, and she takes a step back so her back is pressed against the edge of the tall table.   
“I'm good but thank you.” Erin says politely, giving him a weak smile before turning back around. He steps closer to her so his front is pressed against her back, and her whole body tenses. Both Adam, and Kevin stand, as they take in the scared look in Erin's eyes, but the guy doesn't shy away.  
“Well then how ‘bout you let me take you home?” He whispers in her ear, and grabs her ass. And then Erin swings her hand around, and backhands him, causing him stumble back, and just as he was about to go back at her, slurring   
“You stupid bitch.” Jay stands in front of her, and catches the guy's fist in his hand, and Jay delivers one powerful punch to the drunken guy's face. When the guy gets back up on his feet, bloods gushing out of his nose. Adam goes to hold the guy back, and Kevin puts his arm up in front of Jay.   
“Jay, stay out of this.” The guy slurs  
“Looks like yet another night in the drunk tank, uh Sean.” Adam says, as he and Kim walk him out of the bar.   
XXXXXX  
At Jay's house, Allie uses her key to get in. Having seen Jay at Lottie's she thinks he won't be back for a while. She walks in and she hears growling, but she doesn't see the dog so she continues further in. She goes into Jay's room, and begins to grab the rest of her things, she opens the top drawer of the dresser, and sees a manila folder sitting on top of the clothes. She pulls it out and starts looking through it. She pulls her phone out and takes pictures of the photos in the file. Then she hears the growling again, except this time its closer. She turns around, and sees the German Shepherd standing close to her. His white teeth showing as he snarls at her. She attempts to leave, but he barks and growls and steps closer to her. She waits for a few minutes, before she calls Jay.  
XXXXXX  
“Are you sure you're ok?” Jay says for what must be the sixth time.   
“Yeah.” She says   
“What happened Jay?” A woman who looks to be the same age as Ms. Belle, comes over to them and asks.   
“Same old Sean, got drunk off his ass, and was bothering Erin." Kevin answers for Jay.   
“I'm sorry dear, he won't be coming back into my bar again.” The woman says to the only one she doesn't recognize, assuming she's Erin, and Erin nods. Jay keeps her hand in his as he answers his phone.   
“Hello?” He says  
“Allie? Why are you calling me?” Erin looks at him, taking in his confused look. She can feel him tense when he says his ex’s name.   
“Alright I'll be right there.” He says before hanging up the phone.   
“We got to go.” He says to Erin.   
“We'll see you guys later, have a nice night Ms. Linda.” Jay says, and he rushes out of the bar, Erin follows behind him, her hand still clutched in his.   
“What's going on?” Erin asks once they drive away from the bar.   
“Allie's at the cabin, she still has a key, and Chance has her cornered in my room.” He answers. He speeds, to get his house as quickly as possible. When they get they both rush inside. Erin just has to say his name once, and he comes running to her. The large dog, jumps up and gives his owner kisses on the face; while whining. She pets him for a few minutes, before she takes him to her room, and closes the door.   
“Allie you can come out now.” Jay says from the living room, and she cautiously walks out.  
“She's lucky that fucking dog didn't bite me.” She spits out as she gets to him.   
“What the hell are you doing here Allie?”   
“I wanted to come get the rest of my stuff, and when I saw you at Lottie's I figured now would be the perfect time.” She says, and he can smell the alcohol on her breath, even from several feet away, and he understands why he didn't see her car, at least she's smart enough not to drive drunk.  
“Give me the key, and get the hell out of my house.” He yells, and she takes the key off of her key ring and hands to him.   
“Can I at least get the rest of my stuff?” She asks with tears in her eyes, he turns away from her, and goes to grab her things. He comes back out quickly, with a small duffel bag, and goes to open the door; dropping the bag on the ground just outside the door.   
“Can't I wait in here until my cab gets here?” She asks   
“No.” He says, and she looks down, as she walks out the door. She turns around, and opens her mouth to say something, but Jay slams the door, and she hears the lock click. Allie stands on the front porch for twenty minutes before she gets picked up by a yellow cab.   
XXXXXX  
Inside, Jay knocks on the door to Erin's room. She gets up, and goes to open the door.   
“She gone?” She asks, and he nods.   
“I'm sorry for everything that's happened tonight Erin.” He says as they walk to the kitchen, and each of them get a glass of water.   
“None of it was your fault Jay.” She says; bringing her hand up to his cheek, and running the pad of her thumb over the slight stubble along his face.   
“Well except you not taking the key to your house back when you broke up with her.” She says, and Jay looks up at her then, and she smiles at him, and they both chuckle.   
“Alright well should we go to bed, I'm sure you're tired.” He says, and she nods, and stands on her the tips of her toes, and presses a gentle kiss to his lips.   
“Goodnight.” She whispers against his lips  
“Goodnight.” He says as he leans back in to give her another couple pecks. He pats Chance's head,   
“He's never been one to like men, at all, but he likes you.”   
“What's not to like?” Jay replies, and Erin laughs, and walks to her room. He grabs his glass of water and goes to his room.   
XXXXXX  
She gets up early and makes coffee and omelets, and he joins her in the kitchen about half hour later.   
“Good morning.” He says pouring himself a cup of coffee.   
“Good morning.”   
“How'd you sleep?”   
“Ok, you?” She says  
“I slept alright.” He says before taking a sip of his coffee.   
“So um I wanted to ask you, if maybe you’d like to go somewhere with me today? We could make lunch before we go, and uh-" He asks shyly, his cheeks becoming pink.   
“Are you asking me out on a date?” She asks, and he nods his head. She stands from the table, and walks to stand in front of him. She leans up, and attaches her lips to his.   
“I'd love to go on a date with you.” She whispers against his lips, with a smile and he smiles at her; giving her another kiss.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this, and that you’ll let me know what you think please?


	7. Chapter 7

“I'd love to go on a date with you.” She whispers against his lips, with a smile and he smiles at her; giving her another kiss.   
XXXXXX   
They're interrupted by a knock at the front door, and the dogs barking. Erin jumps, and backs away from Jay.   
“Stay here, I'll go see who it is” Jay says as he exits the kitchen.   
He comes back quickly behind his uncle.   
“Are you ok?” Al says, looking Erin over.  
“Yeah I'm good.” Erin replies, a somewhat confused expression on her face.   
“Why wouldn't she be?” Jay questions  
“I just talked to Sean Roman, I asked him what happened, but he didn't remember. Then I talked Burgess and Ruzek, since they brought him in, and they told me what happened. I gave you my go ahead less than eighteen hours ago, and you already put her at risk.”   
“I didn't think we'd-" Jay begins  
“Maybe the problem is that you didn't think Jay. I don't believe I have to remind either of you of the situation.” He says, and Jay and Erin both shake their heads.   
“Stay out of public, and keep her safe Jay, or the next move out, will be permanent.” Al adds. They both nod their heads at him, before he leaves.   
XXXXXX  
“So where are we going?” Erin asks when they sit down at the table.   
“Do you like surprises?” He asks giving her a grin before taking a bite.   
“Not usually.” She says, raising an eyebrow at him.  
“Well that's too bad.” He says; taking another bite.  
“Tell me please?” She says; giving him a pout much like the one she gave him last night.   
“Nope.” He says; taking the final bite of his omelet and leaving the table, a huge grin plastered on his face. The look on her face almost has him giving in again, but he tries his best not to look at her.   
XXXXXX  
They had planned on going on their date later in the day but as they were making their lunch, it started raining. That was three days ago, and the rain hasn't stopped. Jay wanted to take her on a date outdoors, but has since settled on doing something simple inside.   
“Hey uncle Al, can someone come over tonight for maybe an hour?” He says when he hears the line pick up.   
“What's going on?”  
“I just need to go to the store.”   
“I'll be there at five”  
“Thanks uncle Al.” Jay says before hanging up the phone.   
XXXXXX  
“Hey.” Jay says walking into Erin's room, after finishing their dinner.   
“Hey.” She says, putting her book down, and turning to face him.   
“Dinner's ready.” He says, and she gets up from the bed. She goes to walk into the kitchen, but he gently grabs her waist from behind, and guides her towards the fireplace, at the side of the living room.   
He's nervous when she doesn't say anything, and becomes even more anxious as they walk past the couch, and his little set up comes into view. The red and black flannel blanket he put down on the floor, is surrounded by six throws pillows, and an assortment of candles. In the middle of the blanket is their dinner, with two more candles. And there's a fire crackling lightly in the fireplace.  
“I know this probably isn't what you pictured our date to be like, neither did I but I wanted to do something since we can't do what I originally planned. If you don't like it we can-" Jay rambles nervously, but she turns around, with his hands still on her waist. She stands on the tips of her toes, and presses her lips to his, effectively cutting him off.   
“I'll understand if you just want to eat at the table.” He adds against her lips, causing her to giggle, and give him another peck.  
“It's perfect.” She says, and he smiles, and his eyes twinkle.   
They sit down, and he uncovers the food. It's a few minutes before either of them speaks.   
“So?” He asks  
“So?” She says back  
“How'd I do?”   
“It's amazing Jay.”   
“I was afraid this would be the worst first date you've ever had.” He says, and he watches as the smile disappears from her face.   
“Did I say something wrong?” He asks, putting his plate down, as she shakes her head.   
“What's wrong?” He asks  
“Nothing it's probably one of the sweetest things someone's ever done for me.” She says, and he gives her look, as if he knows there's more. She looks down at her plate, and pushes the little bit of food left, around with her fork.   
“This is the only first date I've ever had.” She admits quietly. He swallows hard, and looks at her, shocked. How has someone like her never been taken on a date before? He thinks, and he feels even worse that this was their first date. She senses his mood change, and curses herself for being the reason his eyes aren't twinkling anymore and now have a sort of sadness to them, and he's no longer smiling. She pushes her plate to the side, and crawls over to him, until their legs brush against each others. Her hand goes to cup his cheek, and tilts his face up, so his eyes look up to hers.   
“I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that.”   
“I'm sorry that I didn't do something more-" He says, but she cuts him off with a kiss again. She didn't need to hear whatever he was going to say, she wasn't lying when she said this was the sweetest thing someone has ever done for her.   
“I loved it” She says honestly, while looking into his eyes, and that's when his smile returns, the one that she's fallen in love with. He leans in and captures her lips again.   
“Although the noodles were a little under cooked.” She says; trying to keep a straight face, but fails when his freckled lips form a slight pout.  
“I'm kidding Jay, it was perfect.” She adds.   
XXXXXX  
After they had gotten everything cleaned up from their dinner, they had settled on the couch to watch the Cubs game. They had started out with a few inches between them, but with each cheer, and each inning they moved closer together. By the bottom of the third she was leaning into his side, his arm wrapped around her back, and hers wrapped around his middle. Then with the top of the fifth, the pressure she was putting on his side, and the way her breathing evened told him that she had fallen asleep. When he looked down at her, her eyes were closed, and her lips were parted slightly. He thought about moving her to her bed, but decided against; liking her where she is. He kissed her forehead; admiring her a little longer, before returning his attention back to the game. When the game was over, he turns the TV off, and glances down at her for what must have been the twentieth time since she had fallen asleep. He turns his body a little, and puts his left arm under legs, and adjusts his right arm so he can pick her up as he stands. He walks to her room, and lays her down gently. He pulls the comforter out from under her, and proceeds to cover her with it, before placing another kiss to her head. Erin's face scrunches briefly before softening again, and turns herself around; still not waking from her sleep. He smiles at that as he goes to the door, and turns the light off. He then heads to his room, hoping that the rain will let up soon, so he can take her on a proper date.   
XXXXXX  
The next morning the rain has stopped, and they decided to utilize the time by going for a run. She's only a few feet in front of him, and avoids a muddy puddle, but he slips on the mud, and heads up falling into the same puddle she went around. She stops, and turns to face him. Her hand covers her smile, but she can't contain the very unladylike cackle that bubbles out of her, as she takes in his agitated and muddy state.   
“And I'm the klutzy one, uh?” She says with a little giggle.  
“You are.” He says, attempting to get up, but just slips back into the puddle, causing some water to splash and hit Erin's exposed ankles, and lower shins.   
“Right.”   
“Can you come here please?” He asks, and she gives him a look of hesitation.   
“As long as you don't pull me down too.” She says stepping closer to him. She tries to plant her feet as she takes his hand, but the mud under her shoes causes her to slide, and then she falls forward, and lands on top of him.   
“See I told you, you're the klutzy one.” He says with a smile.   
“Says the one who landed in the muddy puddle first.”   
“All you had to do was help me up, and yet here you are getting even more mud on me.”   
“You knew this would happen.”   
“No, I didn't expect you to end up in my lap, not that I'd mind if we weren't in cold dirty water.” He says, as she scoots back slightly in his lap, and he holds back a moan. He lifts her up so she's standing directly in the puddle; her feet positioned in between his legs. She holds her hands out again, and this time they manage to get him standing. They turn around to go back home, and are completely unaware that they're being watched, and followed.   
“Jay you really thought I would be able to help you up, when you're how much taller, and weigh significantly more than me.”   
“Woah, you make it sound like I'm overweight.” He says, stopping in his tracks, which causes her to look back at him.  
“No just muscular.” She says with a wink, he gives her a smug grin as she continues back towards the cabin.   
The sloshing sound of their wet shoes seems to intensify as they walk up the stairs of the back porch. Jay grabs the back of her shirt just as she was about to open the door.   
“Jay I'm cold, and want to go inside.” She states, her lip quivering, and her teeth chattering slightly.   
“We're not going inside like this.” He says gesturing between them with his hand.   
“And what do you suppose we do, strip down out here?” She asks, and he smirks.   
“Not that I'm apposed to that idea at all, I was thinking that maybe we could at least rinse off.” He says looking towards the black hose to the side of the deck. She shakes her head at him  
“I think I'd rather just take the clothes off, and go inside.”   
“Come on, it'll be quick, and then you can take a hot shower, and you won't get mud all over my house.”   
“Fine.” She says as they walk to the hose. He hands her the hose, and then turns to turn on the water. She rinses him off first, and she licks her lips, and feels her temperature rise temporarily as she watches how his shirt and shorts begin to cling to him in all the right places. It's not until it's her turn to get rinsed off that she cools down again.   
They take their shoes and socks off before they walk into the house.   
“Go ahead and take a shower, I'll bring you some towels.” He says, and she goes to the bathroom in her room as he walks to the closet at the end of the hallway. When he walks in her room, he puts the towels on the chair next to the bathroom door, which is open just enough that he can see her getting undressed. He knows he should advert his eyes, but he can't, that is until she sees him in the mirror, and then he casts his eyes down. She takes off her shirt, and he looks back up when the black material hits the floor with a splat. His eyes lock on hers, and she slowly unclasps her sports bra. She turns around to face him, with her bra hanging loose on her shoulders, as she takes tentative steps towards him. His breath hitches as she comes to stand just in front of him, and her purple bra hits the floor. He's frozen in place as she presses herself against him, and kisses his jaw.   
“Are you sure you want this?” He asks, each word broken up with a kiss.   
“Yes.” She answers shyly, but she sees that he's hesitating, so she backs away, and covers her bare chest with her arms.   
“I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed.” She says taking another step back. He takes a few steps towards her; grabs her waist, and gently pushes her into the doorframe. Then he slams his lips on onto hers. When he pulls away she gives him a weak smile, as she takes in his now dark eyes. She grabs the hem of his shirt, and he nods once before she pulls it up and over his head. One hand remains on her waist just above her panties, and the other goes to grab her face, and he kisses her again. He pushes her panties down to the floor. Then his hands slide down her body, and grasp the back of her thighs, so she hops up into his arms. She wraps her legs around his waist, and her hands go to the back of his neck; arms resting on his shoulders as she continues to kiss him. He blindly walks into the shower, and stands under the now lukewarm stream. They're both panting, as she pushes his wet shorts, and boxers down just enough to free his member. His forehead falls to the crook of her neck as her hand pumps back and forth on his length a few times before she guides him to her entrance. He thrusts into her just as the thunder rumbles outside once again.   
XXXXXX


	8. Chapter 8

His shorts fall to the floor, and cause a small splash. Stepping out of them, he walks to pin Erin against the cool tile wall. She gasps as he picks up the pace, her face against his shoulder, and his is buried in the crook of her neck.   
She finds her release quickly, and he pumps his hips into her a few more times before his body stills as he too falls over the edge. His breath sputters against her neck, while hers starts to slow. His bruising grip on her thighs loosens slightly, as she peppers kisses along his shoulder, neck, and jaw. Despite his muscles shaking, he makes no attempt in putting her down.   
“Wow.” She whispers into his ear; pressing one last kiss just behind it, before she pulls his head away her neck. Her hazel eyes lock on his dark blue ones. She smiles at him, and he gives her a crooked smile that makes her melt. She leans down, and attaches her lips to his. Jay pulls her away from the wall, and goes to stand under the water again; finally releasing her legs. His hands go to her waist, to steady her. They clean each other off; trying to become familiar with the other's body. When he turns her around, he kisses her neck. His length pressed against the curve of her ass. She bites back a moan, when she feels him bob, and begin to harden again, against her. She reaches back, and lines him up with her, and he sinks in again.   
XXXXXX  
Jay walks back into the living room after cleaning their dishes from lunch. He looks like a little kid; his gaze set on the two glasses of water in his hands. He bumps into the end table right next to where Erin's seated on the couch. The lamp shakes and the picture frame wobbles a little before it falls forward. It seems to fall in slow motion as she leans forward, and catches it. He raises his eyebrow at her, and gives her a smirk.   
“Again, I'm the klutz?” She says, still holding the frame.   
“I was making sure I didn't spill the water.” He says seriously, but she laughs.   
“I'm pretty sure the picture frame breaking would have made a bigger mess than the water spilling.”   
“Touché” He says sitting down next to her, as she looks at the picture still in her hands. It's of a lady who looks exactly like Ms. Belle but her smile is different, and her eyes a little more green. There's a red haired little boy who she assumes is Will, peaking around the blue easel, and another little boy, sitting in her lap; looking up at her. Erin smiles at the candid picture, and looks over at Jay; who is also looking at the picture.   
“Your mom looks just like her.”   
“Yeah.” He says sadly.   
“Were you close?” She asks shyly  
“I spent more time here than anywhere else as a kid. Whenever I had a bad day at school, or when my dad was being the drunken asshole he is, I'd come here. Nana always made me forget, and sometimes Gramps would too.” He says, tears filling his eyes. Erin's hand comes to cup his cheek; her thumb sweeping back and forth over his stubbly skin. She wants to ask him more about what he means, but she doesn't want to push him.  
“The first time I was sent home early after getting into a fight at school; I had a busted lip and a black eye. I knew my dad would be pissed if I went home, I'm sure he would of said something to make me weak like he always did, so I asked if I could come here. My mom didn't even have to call and ask, she just drove me here, and Nana didn't say anything when I just walked in. My mom went back to work, and Nana and I went to our spot, and skipped rocks, and talked. I remember her trying to cheer me up, and saying ‘Don't let those little assholes bring you down. They're just jealous of your good looks, and razor sharp mind.’ He says, changing his voice a little as he says his grandma's words, along with a sad chuckle.   
“So your grandma is the one who gave you a big head?” Erin says after a few minutes, trying to lighten the mood a little, and he laughs.   
“You think she was wrong?” He asks, and she shakes her head, as she puts the frame back on the table.   
He goes to turn on the TV, and she cuddles into his side. Eventually she falls asleep against his warm body. He runs his fingers through her hair gently, and places a kiss to her hairline, before he extracts himself from the couch. He makes his way to the basement. It's dark and cold, but pretty much everything of his grandmother's is down there, and he hopes that he can find what he's looking for. He gets distracted a few times, before he finds the blue wooden pieces. He goes back upstairs to grab his tools from the garage. He walks past the couch, and looks at Erin still sleeping soundly on the couch. Once he had the tools he needed, he goes back to the basement, and begins to put the pieces back together.   
XXXXXX  
A few days later, they're sitting across from each other on the floor, with a scrabble board between them, as they wait for they're food to arrive. When it does Jay gets up and goes to the door, while Erin stays seated and holds the dogs. She listens to the delivery girl flirt with him, and he respectfully ignores her passes, and hands her the money. He gives Maddie a weak smile, before saying goodbye, and closing the door. He brings the food over to where they were seated, and places the bag on the coffee table. Erin moves over a little, as he starts pulling the white take out containers out of the bag. She opens her carton, and takes a bite then she asking  
“So how many times did you sleep with her?”   
He nearly chokes on his food, as the words leave her mouth.   
“What?”   
“The delivery girl.”   
“Maddie?”   
“Yeah, how many times?” She says with a smile.  
“I didn't, we never-.” He says, his eyebrows furrowed, and his eyes squinted as he looks down at his food avoiding her gaze. Despite the playful look on her face.   
“You’re a horrible liar.”   
“We played scrabble like once at her apartment.” He says finally looking at her.   
“Uh-huh” She says with a smirk.   
“Well as long as you're only playing scrabble with me now, I don't care who you've been with before.” She says; moving to her knees and leaning over the table to give a quick peck to his lips.   
“I'm not interested in playing with anyone else.” He says against her lips, and gives her a peck in return, just before she swipes his egg roll.   
“Hey I asked you if you wanted me to order you one, and you said no.”   
“Yeah, but it looks too good.” She says, and he gives her his best pout.   
“Can I at least have a bite please?”   
“Sorry, I should have just-” She says handing the egg roll back to him.   
“I just want a bite then you can have the rest.”   
“No, it's yours-“   
“Er it's fine.” He says, and she oddly enjoys the way he says Er. She takes a tentative bite, and then places the rest in Jay's container.  
They finish their food, clean up the containers, and then go back to playing the game.   
“You want to make this interesting?” Jay asks, raising his eyebrow at her.  
“I'm listening.” Erin answers.   
“We'll start over, and play in rounds. Whoever scores lower in each round loses-" He says looking down her body, and then back up to her face.   
“An article of clothing.” He finishes with a smirk.  
“What do I get when I win?”  
“Me.” He says, his voice low and husky.  
“Ok.” She says, starting to put the tiles back in the bag.  
They were five rounds in, and Erin just lost her panties, and a groan left his lips as she slowly pushed the red lacy down her legs. Her shirt is her last piece of clothing, and it's just long enough to cover her. He's left in his boxers, and she admires his body in the soft glow of the fire, as his attention shifts to his letters. She finds herself wondering again how she wasn't sore from their shower the other day; taking in the definition of each abdominal muscle; the v of his hips, and the impressive bulge under the thin fabric of his boxers. His eyebrows furrowed as he concentrates. A deliciously wicked smile makes its way across his face as he starts to lay some of his tiles on the board. Then he looks at her  
“Beat that.” He says confidently.  
Her smile drops as she takes in her letters, and the words on the board. She lays out a few letters, and frowns knowing he won.   
“I win.” He says after calculating the points in his head; looking at her expectantly. She ignores his gaze, and puts the game away quickly, not wanting the dogs to chew on the tiles. She puts the box on the table as she stands, before turning to face him. Her hands go to the hem of her shirt, and his go to stop her as he too stands up.  
“We don't have to, if you-.” He says, but she takes her shirt off before he can finish. His eyes were already dark with desire, but they darken even more as her shirt hits the floor. He picks her up; her legs wrapping around his waist as he walks them to his room.  
XXXXXX  
The next day they went for a run, before the rain picked up once again. They get back, and take their showers. Then Jay goes to the basement, and Erin lays on her bed, and starts reading a book.   
After reading over half the book, she sets it down, and grabs her empty glass; walking to the kitchen, and refilling it. She takes a sip while looking outside. It's still light out, but the grey storm clouds make it seem later than it is. She's taking in the way the large rain drops hit the river's surface, when she sees something. Her blood runs cold as her eyes focus on someone dressed in all black standing near the big tree, just on the other side of the fence. She takes another sip, and sets the glass down calmly; hoping she doesn't give away that she spotted them, and leaves the kitchen in search of Jay. She finds the basement door open, and says his name down the stairs. The sound of metal hitting the floor, is followed by his heavy footsteps coming up the stairs.   
“What's wrong?” He asks concerned when he gets to the top of the stairs.   
“There's someone outside, by the big tree. They're just standing there staring at the house.”   
“Go to my room, and lock the door.”   
“Jay-“   
“Now Erin!” He says sternly.   
She does what he says; running to his room. She shuts his door and flicks the lock, before going to close the curtains. She then goes to climb onto the bed, and brings the comforter up to her chin. His scent engulfs her, and calms her heart rate a little.   
Fifteen minutes later someone knocks on the door, Erin doesn't move until she hears the person talk.   
“Erin, it's Kim.” Erin gets up cautiously; unlocking and opening the door.   
“Hi.” Kim says sweetly.  
“Where's Jay? Did they get him?” Erin asks  
“They're looking for him.”   
“He was wearing all black, had sunglasses on, I don't know if it was Charlie. It had to be him, or maybe someone he had follow me? I thought we were good, I didn't think we got trailed. I mean why would he wait until now. I've been here six weeks. Why-" Erin rambles as she paces back and forth in of the bed. Kim grabs her arm to stop her.  
“Erin take slow, deep breathes.” Kim says, and Erin does.  
“We'll catch him.” She adds  
“You don't know that.” Erin says.  
“No I guess I don't but I know Jay, and he'll do anything to keep those he cares about safe.”   
“He's only known me six weeks Kim, and we've only just-“ She begins but cuts herself short, knowing that information is not important and shakes her head.   
“Say no more.” Seemingly getting where Erin was going with that. “Its not only his job, I can tell he genuinely cares about you too Erin, and he's not going to let anything happen to you. None of us will.” She says, and Erin nods releasing a deep breathe, and sitting down on the edge of the bed, Kim sitting down next to her, and pulls her into a side hug.   
“Kim, Al wants to talk to you both.” Adam says from the doorway of the room.  
“Ok.” Kim says, with a nod, and Adam walks away. They soon join Adam and Al in the kitchen.   
“Erin what exactly did you see, can you give us a general description?” Al asks  
“I think it was a guy, but they were wearing all black, and had sunglasses on. I'm sorry.” She says.   
“What about height? Race?” Adam asks.  
“They were white, but I'm not sure how tall, they were too far-" Erin answers  
“Sarge we found some shoe tracks, got an imprint, but they disappeared in the brush a few yards away.” Kevin says as he walks in through back door, followed by Jay. Erin's tear filled eyes look at him briefly, before she turns to go to her room. She takes a few deep breathes, and closes her eyes; picturing the person she saw. She grabs her sketch pad, and sketches the image in her head quickly, before going back out to the kitchen, and placing the sketch on the counter. Jay moves to go by her, but she shakes her head as she tucks some hair behind her ear, and then she goes back to her room, and closes the door behind her.   
“Where the hell were you?” She hears Al yell.   
“I know I'm supposed to protect her, but you're acting like I left her here by herself. I wasn't aware we had to be attach at the hip.” Jay snaps back.   
“No we just expected you to be attached in some way ” Adam says. Erin can't see them, but Jay sends his best friend a death glare.   
“You think this a joke?” Al yells again, and both of them shake their head.   
“Stay alert Jay, whoever this was is confident enough to come here. They may have been scared off today, but that doesn't mean they won't come back. I'll have a patrol car outside around the clock. I want you to keep me updated, and notify me if either of you sees anything else.” Al says, and Jay nods.   
After another hour or so everyone leaves, and Jay goes to her room. He knocks on the door, and waits for her to answer, but she doesn't. He opens the door to check on her, and sees her with her earbuds in, and her sketch pad in her lap. He closes the door, and goes to his room, before going back to the kitchen to make them something eat.   
He makes her a plate, and takes it to her room. He knocks first, but she doesn't answer again so he goes in. The bed dips as he sits down next to her, and she looks over at him. She closes the sketch pad, and places it on the nightstand, and takes her earbuds out; turning off the iPod, and setting it on top of the sketch pad.   
“Hey.” He says, handing her the plate.   
“Thank you, but I'm not really hungry.” She says, and he raises his hand to her forehead, and she looks at him confused.   
“What are you doing?” She asks.   
“Checking to see if you have a fever, this is the first time I've seen or heard you say that you're not hungry.” He says with a chuckle; hoping to get her to laugh, but she doesn't even smile. She looks down at her hands; sitting on top of her crossed legs. He sees a tear roll down her cheek, and he puts the plate on the nightstand next to him, and cups her face with both of his hands. He kisses away her tears, before she leans forward; burying her face in his chest.   
“I'm scared Jay.” She mumbles into the blue fabric of his shirt. He kisses her head, and pushes her a away gently, and tilts her head so she's looking at him.   
“I know you are Er, but you don't have to be. I won't let anything happen to you.” He says, trying to convince both of them. She looks at him hesitantly, before she nods, and goes back to leaning into him. His strong arms wrapping around her, and making her feel safe.   
They sit there until her tears dry, and he manages to convince her to eat a little. He goes to his room after she falls asleep, and pulls out her case file. Looking over Charlie Pugliese's description, and looking to see if he had any injuries. The person who's tracks they found, was favoring their right leg, even seemed to drag it a little.   
XXXXXX   
Erin was startled awake by the booming thunderstorm outside. She tries to go back to sleep, but she just tosses and turns, before getting up, and going to the kitchen. Lightning lights up the sky briefly, and Erin sees the hooded figure again, but this time they're at the back door. She knows she's seeing things, when the lighting strikes again seconds later, and they're gone. She's still freaked out, and before she can talk herself out of it, she goes to Jay's room. To her surprise he's still up, looking through what she assumes is her case file. He looks up at her over his black framed glasses; closing the manilla folder, and putting it in the drawer next to him.   
“Hey.” She says.   
“Hey, is everything ok?” He asks.  
“The storm woke me up, and I couldn't fall back to sleep. Then I went to the kitchen to get something to drink, and I thought I saw them, but there was nothing there when the lighting struck again.”   
“Come here.” He says quietly; pulling the covers down next to him. She goes to the opposite side of the bed, and climbs under the navy blue comforter. She falls asleep almost as soon as her head lays against his bare chest. His warmth, his strong arm wrapping around her, and the sound of his heartbeat beneath her ear lulls her to sleep.   
XXXXXX  
His freckled, muscular arm is wrapped loosely around her waist, where her shirt is riding up. One of her hands is tucked beneath the pillow under her head, and the other is holding his wrist. Their bodies are close, but are only touching where his arm meets her waist. When he wakes up in the middle of the night, he moves closer to her so her back pressed against his front. Her warm body tenses briefly, before she melts into him. He kisses her neck lightly, before he drifts back to sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

The next three nights go the same as Erin wakes up in the middle of the night, and goes to Jay's room; crawling into his bed, and cuddling into his side whether he's awake or not.   
XXXXXX   
He rubs his eyes as he props himself up on one of his elbows, and looks down at her still sleeping. He carefully gets out of the bed, and goes to get the easel he got done fixing yesterday. He texts his mom about the things he asked her for two days ago. She texts back quickly, and says she can bring it by now, which he politely agrees to.   
XXXXXX  
“Hey ma.” He says quietly as he opens the door for her, and nods his head at the two patrol officers parked in front of his house. He closes the door behind her, as he grabs some of the canvases from her hands.   
“Good morning.” She says; setting the bags down near the easel.   
“Where's Erin?” She asks as she walks past Erin's room.   
“She’s still sleeping.” He answers.  
“In your room?” Ms. Belle asks as she turns her head towards her son, and raises her eyebrow; continuing towards the kitchen, and Jay nods.  
“What's that look for?” He asks as they reach the kitchen.   
“Nothing.” She says.   
“You were all about her the day after she got here, but now you're not?”   
“I like her.”   
“Then what?”   
“I just want both of you to be careful, what with that creep following her, I don't want either of you getting hurt.”   
“I won't let anything happen.”   
“I just worry about you.” She says lightly tapping the side of his face, with a smile.   
“We'll be fine mom.” He says  
“So, I don't have to be to the diner for another hour, would you like me to make the two of you breakfast?”   
“Thanks, but I can make breakfast.” He says; starting a pot of coffee.   
“I'll make you some waffles.” She says, and Jay rolls his eyes.   
XXXXXX  
Erin reaches out in front of her before opening her eyes, then she turns around, but she finds that she's alone. She sits up, and rubs the sleep from her eyes, before getting out of the bed. The air is cool against the bare skin of her legs, and arms. She goes to the open closet, and pulls down one of his sweatshirts, and pulls it over her head as she leaves the room.   
Jay exits the kitchen at the same time she was about to enter it, and they walk into each other, and his hands steady her at her waist.   
“Good morning.” He says to her with a smile.   
“Morning.” She replies somewhat groggily.   
“I have a surprise for you.” He whispers to her.   
“Jay"   
“I know you don't like surprises, but I think you'll like this one.” He says, giving her a kiss before walking her towards the fireplace.   
“Is that your-?” She begins to ask, and he nods.  
“It's my Nana's easel, it was kind of broken, but I think it should be ok to use."   
“You didn't have to go through the trouble.” She says, turning around in his arms, and he gives her a deep kiss; shutting her up.   
“My mom brought some paint, canvases, and another sketch pad, since we have to stay here, I figured you could have different things to do to pass time, and if you don't like it-"   
“It's perfect, thank you.” She adds, and he gives her a big smile. Her hands meet at the back of his neck, pulling him down for yet another kiss.   
“Breakfast is read-" Ms. Belle begins, walking into the living room, and turning back around, letting the young couple have their moment.   
“I didn't know your mom was still here.” She says against his lips when she pulls away after hearing Ms. Belle.  
“She wanted to make us breakfast.” He says back to her; giving her another peck, before they walk to the kitchen.   
“Good morning Ms. Belle.” Erin says  
“Good morning sweetheart.”   
“Thank you for making breakfast, and the art supplies. I can pay you-"   
“Don't be ridiculous dear.”   
“Thank you.” Erin says again, giving Ms. Belle a hug, much to the older woman's surprise. Jay just continues to fill his plate with a huge smile on his face.   
Ms. Belle leaves soon after, leaving Erin and Jay to eat.   
“So can we at least go outside?” Erin asks after a few bites.   
“We can go on the porch.” He says, and she nods. She finishes her food, and goes to clean her dishes. He can tell something's wrong, but he finishes his food, and then when he gets done he goes to stand behind her. Placing his plate and utensils next to the sink, and leaning his head down to rest on her shoulder.   
“What's wrong?” He asks against her cheek.   
“Nothing.” She says  
“You're lying.” He says; placing a light kiss to her skin. There's a brief pause before she responds.  
“I just feel bad.”  
“About?”   
“About the fact that we’re stuck inside, and it's finally getting nice outside.” She says with her back still to him.   
“I don't know about you, but I can already tell that there's no one else I'd rather be locked in a house with.” He says with a light chuckle, kissing her neck, and cheek, before turning her around. His words, and kisses causes the butterflies to take flight and flutter in her stomach, but she can't find it in her to smile. When she looks up at him with sad eyes, his smile drops. He leans down to place a kiss to her pouty lips.   
“What about soccer?” She asks.  
“What about it?”   
“You were just talking about playing, and coaching, I don't want you to have to give that up.”   
“Well I was thinking that maybe I could have Kim come over for their practices and games. If that's ok with you, otherwise I'm sure Owen will-"   
“That's fine Jay.” She says; pecking his lips, and cutting him off.   
“Besides it'll give me breaks from you.” She says seriously, and he gives her a pout of his own, which causes her to giggle a little.   
“I'm kidding Jay. I'm glad you're still going to coach. When does practice start?”   
“Today at 4.” He answers between kisses, and she hums against his lips. Then she turns back to finish the dishes.   
XXXXXX   
Jay asks Kim to come to his house a half hour before he has to be at the fields. She gets to Jay's a little early, she knocks, but no one answers. She waits a few minutes before knocking again; no one answers, so she takes out the key that Jay had Al give to her. She unlocks the door, and walks in. Carly and Chance bark a few times as they come to greet her by the door. She bends down to pet them, before she makes her way through the living room in search of their owners. She stops when she hears them down the hall; their loud moans have her turning back around. She quickly exits the house, and waits on the front porch.   
Twenty minutes later she gets a text  
Jay- Hey Kim, are you still able to come?  
Kim- I'm at your front door.   
She texts back, and then door is being opened.   
“Hey, how long have you been out here?” Jay asks as he walks away from the door. Kim sees his face is still flushed, as he sits on the arm of the chair to put his shoes on.   
“About twenty minutes.” She answers, but scolds herself for not just saying a few minutes.   
“Oh, did you knock?” He then asks  
“Yup, a couple of times.” She says looking down.   
“Did my uncle give you the key?”   
“Yup.”   
“Oh ok, well next time we don't answer just come in.”   
“I did, and let's just say that I'll wait until one of you let's me in from now on.” She says, and his head shoots up, and his face turns red.   
He only seems to be embarrassed briefly, before a smug grin makes its way onto his face.   
“Sorry that you heard that.” He says sincerely.  
“Heard what?” Erin asks as she walks into the living room; her cheeks quickly become red, as realization hits her. Her wet hair dripping onto her shirt even more when she shakes her head.   
“Oh my god, that's embarrassing.” Erin says; covering her face with her hands.   
“Don't be embarrassed. There was one time my mom walked in on Adam and I. It happens, lesson learned, I'll just wait outside.” Kim says nonchalantly, as Jay walks over to Erin; her hands still covering her face. He kisses her temple, before prying her hands away from her face.   
“Its not that bad Er, it's actually kind of funny.”   
“Yeah, hilarious.” She says to him. She should have just stuck to her guns about not playing scrabble so close to when Kim was supposed to get there, but now that she's had him, she can't resist him.   
“It could have been worse.” He says to her, and she gives him a look, as he smiles and attaches his lips to hers.   
“Sorry again Kim.” He says, and Erin starts to walk to the kitchen.   
“Kim would you like something to drink?” Erin stops, and turns to ask.  
“Do you have any milk? I have really bad heartburn.” Kim answers as she walks to join Erin. They walk to the kitchen, not even acknowledging Jay anymore.   
“K see you girls later.” He says quietly, but they don't hear him from the kitchen. He shakes his head, but smiles as he grabs his keys, and then he leaves.   
XXXXXX  
“Do you want some Tums too?” Erin asks as she pours Kim a glass of milk.   
“I uh, no I'm ok thanks.” Kim replies.   
“Ok.”   
They go to the living room, and Kim goes to the door, and grabs her tote that she brought with her.   
“So I wasn't sure what you'd want to do, but I thought maybe if you wanted to we could watch a movie?” Kim says to Erin, as she sits on the chair; crisscrossing her legs, and covering herself with what has become her favorite blanket.   
“Sure, that's sounds good to me.” She replies   
“Ok so I brought Miss Congeniality, the Legally Blonde movies, She's The Man, and The Heat.” Kim says enthusiastically, and Erin laughs.  
“What's The Heat?”   
“You've never seen it.”   
“Nope, that's kind of why I'm asking.” Erin says with a smile.   
“Oh its one of my favorites, its with Sandra Bullock, and she's an FBI agent, and Melissa McCarthy is a police officer, and they have to work together. We'll watch it.” She says turning the TV on, and putting the DVD in.   
XXXXXX  
Erin and Kim are laughing at the little scenes at the side of end credits just as Jay gets home. He kicks off his shoes, and leans over the chair to kiss Erin on the cheek.   
“Hi.” She says; looking up at him.   
“Hi.” He says back.  
“How was the first practice?”   
“Alright.”  
“I'm going to head out, Adam's been texting me for the last thirty minutes telling me dinners ready, and asking where I am.”   
“Ok thanks for babysitting me Kim.” Erin says, with a chuckle.   
“Hey, I like to think we were just hanging out, I had fun.”  
“Yeah me too.” Erin says as Kim takes the DVD out, and replaces it in its case. Kim leaves, and Erin goes to make dinner, while Jay takes a shower.  
XXXXXX   
A few weeks later, Ms. Belle asks Jay and Will to help around the farm. She's short handed with a couple of her farm hands being on vacation, and she needs help taking care of the animals. So Jay had to get up early to go to the farm. Then he has to go straight from there to the fields, and after running around with the team during practice, Jay just wants to get home; take a shower, and relax with Erin.   
It seems she read his mind, having already ordered take out before he got home. He walks to the kitchen, to say hi and bye to Hailey and Kim. Once they leave, and he's close enough to Erin, he leans down to give her a kiss. She puts her finger under her nose, and takes a step back, so she's pressed up against the counter.   
“I missed you, but shower first, then I'll give you a kiss.” She says, and he smiles at her before walking to his room.   
Erin's wrapped up in the blankets; sitting on the couch, with the white Chinese container in her hand, when he walks back out in a pair of sweatpants. He grabs his food, before going to sit next to her.   
Once they're done eating she throws away their containers, and when she comes back, he's laying down, with one of his muscular freckled arms bent behind his head. She looks at him, and pulls the blankets out from under his feet, as she walks to the chair. His other arm comes out to stop her.   
“I'm just going to the chair.” She says looking down at him.  
“I don't want you going to the chair.”   
“Where would you-" She begins, before letting out a squeal as he pulls her down on top of him.   
“I want you right here.” He says as he leans in, and kisses her. She wraps the blanket around her shoulders, and it falls to their sides. Then her hands run down his neck, to his pecks before sliding down his sides. She peppers kisses along his jaw, and then nuzzles into the crook of his neck.   
XXXXXX  
The cool air against her back, and the feeling of his lips trailing from her neck, and down her spine, wake her up. His hand sliding between her, and the pillow she's holding against her chest and his thumb swiping back and forth just under the curve of her breast, has her opening her eyes, and looking over at the alarm clock on the nightstand in front of her.   
“I thought the scrabble would tire you out.”   
“Hmm it did.” He murmurs against her neck. “But we have to go to my mom's.”   
“We?” She says, still not budging.   
“Yeah, Kim can't come, she's got wedding stuff to take care of, or something today and my uncle said it was ok.”   
“Ok.” She says turning around, and pressing herself against his warm body.   
“Babe we have to get up.” He says as she snuggles into his chest.   
“I'm cold.”   
“You're always cold, but maybe right now it's because you don't have any clothes on.”   
“I didn't hear you complaining last night.”   
“I'm not complaining now, and if we didn’t have to go I'd make sure to warm you up.” He says seductively.  
“Are you sure we don't have time?” She asks, raising her eyebrow at him, while throwing her leg over his hip, and pressing her core into him. He growls  
“Maybe we do.” His says rolling over her.   
XXXXXX  
“Didn't I ask you to get here at five thirty?” Ms. Belle asks as Jay and Erin walk into her living room.   
“Yes ma'am.” Jay answers  
“Yet you get here at ten to six? What were you doing? I expected this from your brother but not you.”   
“We uh, I umm.” Jay says looking at Erin for help.  
“It was my fault Ms. Belle. I'm sorry, I'm not really a morning person, it took some convincing for me to get up.” Erin says looking at Jay, and then his mom. His cheeks are tinted pink, and he's avoiding eye contact with both women.   
“Mmhmm.” Ms. Belle hums, but shakes her head; understanding why her son is acting as he is, and what his girlfriend means. She then grabs her jacket off the back of the couch.   
“Your brother still isn't here, and they've been waiting for about ten minutes.” She adds   
“Who?” Erin asks confused.  
“Mom rescued another horse, and the rescue is dropping her off.” Jay says, and Erin nods as she goes to sit down.   
“Aren't you coming with?” Ms. Belle asks; looking at Erin.  
“I don't think that's the best idea mom.” Jay says  
“She'll be safer with us than sitting in here by herself.”   
“Fine.” He says, and the three of them go out to the stables.   
XXXXXX  
The new horse takes to Erin, and Ms. Belle lets her name her. Erin stands in the stall feeding Penny as Hailey checks her over.   
Ms. Belle goes to the stall that her younger son is currently cleaning out.   
“Maybe you should build stables at the cabin.” She says to get his attention.   
“What makes you say that?” Jay asks; setting the shovel down, and walking to lean against the door, as his mom nods towards Hailey, and Erin with Penny. Erin's smiling as she pets and talks to the copper colored horse.   
“We'll just have to come here to visit more.”   
“I'd love that, but I don't know how much I'd get to see you still, considering she's not a morning person.” She says with a smirk and Jay clears his throat as he goes back to cleaning the stall.   
“You're at least using protection, right?   
“Mom, I didn't like having this conversation with you when I was fifteen and I still don't.”  
“I just know you don't want to get married just because you knocked her up. Not that I wouldn't love having another grandchild.”   
“Well you're going to have to ask Will and Nat to give you another grandchild for now.”   
“Ok, well I'm going to go get cleaned up and go to the diner. Should Erin stay here?”  
“Yeah she's fine.”   
“Ok, I’ll see you later, love you.”   
“Love you too ma.”   
Erin ends up spending the rest of the day in the stables with Jay and Will. Once Hailey leaves, Erin goes to where Jay is. She giggles when she finds him with bits of hay in his hair, and sticking to the skin of his chest, and his jeans.   
“What happened to you?” Erin asks, and he looks up at her.   
“Will thinks he's funny, he hides somewhere and throws hay at me when I walk past.”   
“I don't think I'm funny, I know I am, and it probably wouldn't be as amusing to me if you didn't get so pissed every time.” Will says from the stall next to them, as Erin walks closer to Jay.  
“Well at least you still look hot.” Erin says, and Jay grins at her before they lean in, and kiss.   
“Gross. If you guys are going to have at each other let me know so I can leave.”   
“Shut up Will.” Jay yells “We've got a while to go, if you want to go to the house.” He adds a little more quietly.   
“No I'll stay with you guys. Do you need me to do anything?”   
“No we're good, you can just hang out with the horses if you want.” He says giving her another kiss, and she nods before walking away. He sees her go to Miller's stall, before she walks back to Penny, and that's where he finds her later before they leave.   
XXXXXX  
The next morning Erin goes back to the Halstead farm with Jay. She goes to see Penny first, but she stops dead in her tracks when she sees ‘I found you' painted in red just outside her stall.


	10. Chapter 10

The next morning Erin goes back to the Halstead farm with Jay. She goes to see Penny first, but she stops dead in her tracks when she sees ‘I found you' painted in red just outside her stall.  
XXXXXX  
She just stands there staring at the paint as it dries. Her blood runs cold; her skin becomes as white as a sheet, and at some point tears run down her cheeks. When she's able to form coherent thoughts, she thinks about how she has to leave. She thinks about how she can't put anyone else through this, Charlie wants her, and she's afraid of what he'll do to get her. She's bad news, no matter where she goes, or how many good people she meets, her past and her demons find her and drag her back down. She can't bring this family down with her, she has to go.   
XXXXXX  
“So you told mom to ask Nat and I to give her another grandchild?” Will says to his younger brother, with a laugh as they slowly walk to the stables.   
“Yeah sorry about that.” Jay says, rubbing the back of his neck.   
“No you're not.”   
“No I'm not, she was asking me if I was using protection with Erin, and I tried to avert the topic elsewhere.”   
“Oh baby brother are you not ready for that yet?”   
“Not really, and don't call me that.”   
“What, baby brother?” Will says teasingly.   
“Seriously Will.” Jay says, glaring at his brother.   
“Alright, but uh I actually brought it up cause mom's going to get what she wants in about seven months.”   
“Really?” Jay says, not really believing his brother, but he can tell by the look on his face that he's not pulling his leg.   
“Congrats man.” Jay says patting his brother on the back.   
“Thanks, but you're having the next one.” Will says, giving Jay's a light shove.   
“Yeah, we'll see about that.” Jay says as they round the corner into the stables. Jay almost walks right through the paint, but Will sees it, and grabs his brother's shirt pulling him back.   
“What?” Jay asks Will, before following his brother's line of sight. He gulps, and goes to pull Erin into him, but she pushes him away. He doesn't understand, but instead of trying again, he decides to call the unit, and within twenty minutes they're all there; taking pictures and searching in and all around the stables for evidence. Adam finds red footprints that lead from the words, to just outside of the building.   
Jay goes over where Erin is pacing in front of a couple of the stalls. Her face is stained from tears, and her hands are trembling as she bites at her nails.   
“Hey.” He says from a couple feet away. She looks at him, a tear slowly rolling down her cheek, as she shakes her head, about what he's not sure, but it makes him want to pull her into him more. He takes another step towards her, but she takes one back. He moves closer to her again, but this time he doesn't stop, and wraps his arms around her. Her palms lay flat against his chest trying to push him away, but he won't let her. She gives in eventually, and though her body is still tense, and rigid, he feels her melt into his embrace. She buries her face in his chest, and her hands clutch his shirt, as he strokes the back of her head, and places a comforting, lingering kiss to her temple. The fabric of his shirt slowing becomes darker as her tears soak through to his skin.   
Kim cautiously walks towards them to ask Erin a couple of questions, but Erin still doesn't talk, she just nods or shakes her head to answer the questions. Kevin comes to get Jay, and they go to where Adam and Al are looking at the footprints.   
“Look familiar?” Adam asks pointing down, to the stained concrete floor.   
“There's the same drag mark as back at the cabin, but we pretty much already knew it'd be him.”   
“The person has a limp?” Erin says as they walk back into the stables when its starts to rain outside.   
“Yeah.” Kevin says.  
“Charlie doesn't have a limp.”   
“But how long has it been since you’ve seen him?” Adam asks.  
“I haven't seen him since the trial.”   
“Exactly.” Antonio says  
“But there's no record of him getting injured in jail.” Jay throws in  
“So either he got injured after he escaped, or its not him.” Adam adds, and pretty much everyone nods.   
“Something else that doesn't make sense is why he used paint here.” Kim says.  
Erin sneaks off without any of them noticing, and they continue to discuss.   
“What do you mean?” Adam asks.   
“It says in here that he wrote ‘I found you’ in blood back in Chicago, so why use paint here? If this Pugliese wouldn't you think if anything he'd have gotten even more confident, being as how he found her here.” Kim look in the file, in her hand, and pointing.  
“You’d think.” Kevin says  
“But using paint suggests the opposite.” Al pipes in.   
When Erin gets to the house, she goes to the kitchen and grabs Jay's truck keys. She looks at the picture of the whole Halstead family, and smiles weakly as more tears fall from her eyes at a quicker pace. She lifts her hand, and runs it down the side of the frame gently before she heads for the door.  
“Erin sweetheart what's going on?” Ms. Belle asks coming in just as Erin was about to leave.   
“I'm sorry Ms. Belle, I have to go.” Erin says as she walks past the older woman, and leaves the house. She goes to the truck, and turns the key in the ignition, she wipes the rain drops and tears off her face, before she turns to look behind her, and then she turns to the other side, and backs out of the spot in front of the grey and white farm house. She takes one last look at the house. Her mind takes her back to the day she and Jay first kissed, and then she looks in the rearview at the stables, and her heart constricts thinking about what she's leaving behind, or who she's leaving behind. Her vision is blurred from her tears or the rain she's not sure, but she tries her best to focus as she gets to the main road.   
XXXXXX  
Ms. Belle goes to the stables, when she finds that no one else is in the house. When she gets there, she takes in the red paint covering the floor in front of her newest horse’s stall. Her heartbreaks for Erin and she goes to talk to Jay.   
“I'll get the paint removed soon.” He says  
“I'm more worried about your girl.” Ms. Belle says  
“Was she at the house?” Jay asks.   
“She was when I got here, but she apologized, and said she had to go. She drove off in your truck just now.”   
“Can I use your truck?” Jay asks, and his mom nods again, and hands him her keys. He runs off in the same direction in which he walked in, and goes to his mother's pick up.  
XXXXXX  
“I have cameras in here.” Ms. Belle says to her the group, after she watches her younger son run off, and she gets closer to them.  
“Where's the equipment?” Al asks  
“This way.” She says pointing to the back of the stables, and leading the way.   
When they reach the small office like room, Ms. Belle unlocks it, and steps to the side. Al looks between Adam and Kevin and nods towards the computer monitor. Kevin sits down in the chair, moving the mouse, and pressing some buttons on the keyboard, as Adam stands next to him. The two of them rewind the footage to a few hours prior. They quickly see a hooded figure dressed in all black. In reverse it doesn't seem that they can make out the person's face, but when they press play, they're able to get a glimpse of their perp's face and they're all equal parts shocked and confused.   
“Is that-?” Antonio asks, and everyone nods; not even needing him to finish his question.   
XXXXXX  
Jay goes far past the speed limit to get to the cabin; hoping she's there. When he turns down the gravel drive way leading up to his house, he slams the truck in park; blocking his truck in, before he jumps out. He runs to the front door; turning the knob, and opening it. Once he walks inside his heart rate slows slightly, and the need to hurry, and rush leaves him. He goes to the room that she occupied at first, and his heart rate picks up again. He finds her throwing her things into the second duffel bag; sitting next to a full one.   
“Erin?” He says; his voice cracking.   
“I have to go.” She says, trying to sound cold, but he can hear the pain and sadness in her voice, and see it on her face, even though she's avoiding his gaze. Its the same pain he felt inside, when his mom said she left, and the same sadness he feels at hearing her say those words now.   
“No you don't Erin. Please just stay. I'm not going to let him hurt you.”   
“I can't stay Jay, either he found me, or I have someone else following me and I don't want to put you in danger.” She says, finally looking up at him. His eyebrows are furrowed, and he has three frown lines on his forehead. Water is running down his face, and there's a drop near his nose that disappears and reappears with each quick breathe he takes. His usually bright blue green eyes, are now glassy and grey. She fights with herself on whether or not she should say what's on the tip of tongue. She wonders if its too soon, but it's how she feels, and she figures if this is the last time she's going to see him, she should let him know.   
“Jay, I'm in love with you.” She blurts out without giving it anymore thought, and then she continues “and I want to stay, I’ve never felt like I've belonged anywhere except for here, with you. But I can't put you or your family through this, or put any of you at risk anymore than I already have.” She says  
“I can handle it, we can handle it. This is part of my job.” He says back.  
“It's not part of your job anymore.” She says; sniffling. “I’m sorry.” She says, her shoulder brushing up against his as she walks past him. She clips the leash to her dog's collar, and pats Carly’s head once more before she leaves the house that she's called home for the last three months. She lets Chance jump in the yellow cab first, before she climbs in. She closes the door, and that's when her tears fall again, and there's no stopping them. She can't bring herself to look back at the cabin, even when she sees her dog turn his head and place it in between the headrests of the backseat.   
Jay stands there frozen in place in one of the guest bedroom of his house, for a few minutes before he plops down and sits on the edge of the bed, and the smell of her perfume wafts his nostrils. Never in his life has he felt this kind of heartbreak. This babysitting assignment as he called it in the beginning; letting his home become a safe house was supposed to his punishment, and he thought he'd be happy when it was over and he could go back to his life. But this; getting close to her, just to watch her leave is his punishment. He doesn't allow himself to wallow for long before he's getting back up, and walking out the front door. He's not sure where she went, but he guesses she went to the train station since she took Chance. So he turns right out of his drive way, and drives towards the depot, except when he gets close to the bridge, traffic is at a stand still. He pulls off to the side, the gravel between the road and the grass, crunches under the tires as he parks the truck. He gets out, and runs; his feet cause a small splash; hitting the asphalt hard, as he begins to sprint towards the bridge. It's been down pouring for the better part of a hour, and the large rain drops sting as they come in contact with his face. He soon sees why the traffic is stopped. There's a car accident, it's seems a car and SUV traveling in opposite directions hit each other head on, and about fifteen feet away, the metal and wood railing on the side of the bridge is distorted. There's a small crowd of people standing under their umbrellas near the edge; gasping and talking as they look down. When Jay pushes his way through, he sees Chance swimming around a sinking yellow cab; whining. It's an image he won't soon forget.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: I hope you guys don't hate me too much for two cliffhangers in a row. As always your lovely reviews are appreciated, and I'll try to get the next chapter finished and up as soon as I can… Thanks, and I hope you all have a great weekend. Much Love.


	11. Chapter 11

He's not sure where she went, but he guesses she went to the train station since she took Chance. So he turns right out of his drive way, and drives towards the depot, except when he gets close to the bridge, traffic is at a stand still. He pulls off to the side, the gravel between the road and the grass, crunches under the tires as he parks the truck. He gets out, and runs; his feet cause a small splash; hitting the asphalt hard, as he begins to sprint towards the bridge. It's been down pouring for the better part of a hour, and the large rain drops sting as they come in contact with his face. He soon sees why the traffic is stopped. There's a car accident, it's seems a car and SUV traveling in opposite directions hit each other head on, and about fifteen feet away, the metal and wood railing on the side of the bridge is distorted. There's a small crowd of people standing under their umbrellas near the edge; gasping and talking as they look down. When Jay pushes his way through, he sees Chance swimming around a sinking yellow cab; whining. It's an image he won't soon forget.   
XXXXXX  
He doesn't hesitate, and dives off the edge of the bridge into the water below. When he swims closer to the car, and sees that the left rear door is broken, and open. He gets to the side, and sees who he assumes is the driver frantically trying to free Erin from the seat belt. He sees Erin pulling at the belt weakly, and he knows she's getting close to passing out. He makes eye contact with her briefly; sees the panic in her eyes, and she registers the same look in his. He pulls the cab driver out of the door, and pulls him to the surface. Both men gasp as they come up.   
“Do you have a pocket knife?” Jay asks the driver, and the guy shakes his head.   
“Go up and ask around, bring it down when you get one, I'm going to keep trying to get her out.” Jay says, before taking a deep breath, and going back under.   
He swims to her, and she's still holding out, but barely. He goes into the car, and grabs her cheeks. He moves his head closer to her, and uses one hand to point from his mouth to hers, and she nods, and he moves to seal his lips over hers, before breathing into her mouth. His lungs were screaming, as tried to give her all he had. He pulled away from her, and caressed her cheek, before he went back up for more air. He took a couple deep breaths, as he looked around for the cab driver, when he didn’t see him he went back under, and repeated his actions from moments ago. Then he tried pulling at the seat belt again, but it didn’t budge. She grabbed his wrist weakly, and he looked up at her. She leaned forward as much as she could, and attached her lips to his to kiss him. It was slow yet quick, and when he pulled away, her eyes remained closed as a few bubbles left her nose, and parted lips. His heart sinks as he desperately tries to free her. He hesitantly leaves her to get more air. When he breaks the surface, he sees the cab driver making his way back to the water. Jay swims half way to the bank, and the cab driver jumps into the water to give him the knife.   
“I'm coming with you.” He says.  
“Thanks, and no.” Jay says before he swims to the car, and then back down. The knife cuts through the black material of the belt with ease, and then he pulls it off of her. He pulls her limp body into him, and exits the car.  
It's so loud around them as he gets onto the bridge, with the chatter of the crowd and the rain hitting the ground, but he doesn't hear any of it. All he can hear is the thumping, and pounding of his heart. He vaguely registers gently pushing Chance away as he whines, and licks Erin's face when he lays her down before he starts giving her CPR. He talks to her when he starts chest compressions   
“Come on Er, open your beautiful eyes for me, please.” He pleads, just before pinching her nose, and breathing into her mouth.   
“Come on, breath baby, please, you have to stay with me.” He says, then breathing into her mouth again, and restarting compressions.  
“Please Erin.” He continues to plead with her lifeless body. He doesn’t know how long he continues on with CPR, before he stops and looks at her, he slams his palm against the ground until it bleeds as he cries and puts his head on her chest for a quick second. Then he stops himself from continuing to crumble, and goes back to trying to bring her back, refusing to give up.   
“Please, don't go.” He says. It feels like hours go by, but its only seconds later the paramedics push their way through the somewhat larger crowd. The male paramedic takes over the chest compressions, but lets Jay continue to give her mouth to mouth. She still isn't moving, her eyes remaining closed, and tears stream down Jay's face when they tell him to stop. As they get her onto the backboard, he covers his mouth with his trembling hand, and shakes his head, as he thinks 'She can't be gone, she can't just come and go like that.’   
But then her hand twitches, and her back arches as she coughs; water spewing out of her mouth. He thinks he's imagining things until her eyelashes flutter, and her eyes open and focus on him. He lets out a sigh of relief, and goes to stroke her cheek; walking besides her as they go to the ambulance. He leaves her briefly to take Chance to his mom's truck.   
Neither of them says a thing on the way to the hospital, they just hold each other's hands, and she looks up at him before closing her eyes again. He panicked a little at first, but relaxed hearing her heart rate stay the same.   
XXXXXX   
Jay calls his mom, while Erin's getting examined, knowing she'll inform everyone who needs to know for him. Once they hang up he goes back into Erin’s room.   
“It looks like you're just going to be a little sore, nothing some aspirin won't help with but seeing as how you inhaled water, I'm going to send you home with some antibiotics to prevent infection in your lungs.” The doctor says  
“So can I leave?” Erin asks, as she coughs.  
“I'd like to keep you for at least a few more hours just to observe you.” The doctor replies  
“Ok.” Erin says sadly; wheezing slightly.   
“I'm assuming the coughing, and wheezing is common since she inhaled water?” Jay asks; giving Erin a look of concern.   
“Yes it can be, which is why I'd like to keep her here for a while longer.”   
“So you're just going to wait to see if it worsens?” Jay asks; annoyed.  
“Yes, because I have other patients detective, I'll be by a little later to check on you.” She says writing something on Erin's chart, before placing it in the slot near the door, before she leaves. Jay turns to look at Erin, and she looks down.   
“I’m requesting a different doctor for you.” He says once the doctor is gone.  
“No she's fine, and I'm fine.” She says coughing again.  
“You’re not fine Erin, I thought you were dead, you scared the shit out of me.” Jay says somewhat sternly.  
“It's not like I planned on the cab crashing, and falling into the river.” She almost snaps, in between coughs.   
“I'm not saying you did, but you certainly wouldn't be here if you would have just stayed.” He says a little louder.  
“I can't stay Jay.” She yells at him, but she feels herself become short of breath, and her cough gets worse.   
“Why? And don't give me that bullshit about being scared that I'll get hurt. If you leave you'll be the one that gets hurt.” He yells  
“It's not bullshit Jay, you're not fucking invincible.”   
“Neither are you Erin.” He yells; walking away from her.   
“You know what you've got me confused about, why come here if you were just going put yourself harms way anyways?” He says  
“I didn't think I'd get close to anyone, to you, and now-" She says as she coughs again.   
“You're afraid I'll get hurt.” He says, and she nods.  
“Well I'm afraid too.” He says so quietly, she almost missed it.  
“I'm afraid of you getting hurt, and I'm afraid of not being able to see you smile, and hear you laugh, of not being able to hold you while you sleep at night, and not being able to take you on a proper first date. I'm afraid of losing you, because I'm in love with you too.” Jay adds just as quietly, almost as if he's ashamed of how he feels.   
“I can't make you stay Erin, but if you do I promise there's no safer place than right here with me.” He says, just as Kim comes in. She heard his last statement, and she felt her heart ache for one of her closest friends; knowing how he feels about Erin, without him even telling her.   
“Hey, uh sorry to interrupt, but Al's needs you at the station.” Kim says  
“For?” Jay asks   
“After you left we watched the camera footage at your mom's stables, and we got him.”   
“Who? Charlie?” Erin asks.  
“No.”   
Jay looks at Kim confused.   
“You'll stay with-" He begins, but Kim cuts him off   
“Of course.” Kim says, and Jay gives Erin one last look before he leaves.   
“So you tried leaving us?” Kim asks as she sits down. She takes in the pale complexion of Erin's face, but doesn't think anything of it, considering the day she's had. Erin doesn't look up at her, instead she keeps her eyes cast down, trying to keep her tears at bay. She feels extremely tired all of sudden, and her chest hurts, but figures that normal, and tries to focus on the conversation.   
“I didn't know what else to do Kim. I feel something’s going to get ruined because of me.” She somewhat slurs as exhaustion consumes her.  
“You're not going to ruin anything Erin, and I hope you'll-” Kim begins, but Erin starts to cough more, and struggles to breath.   
“Erin.” Kim says, as she gets up to yell for a doctor. It all goes by in a flash as nurses, and doctors make their way into the room, as Kim goes to stand outside the room, and off to the side. She tries to calm herself down before calling Jay.   
XXXXXX   
Jay gets to the district in record time, and he walks in the door next to the large garage door. He sees his uncle along with Adam and Kevin standing near the lone cell in the garage.   
He sees who's in the cell, and his blood boils. He immediately goes to join Sean in the cell. He picks him up by the collar of his shirt, and pins him against the bars. The smell of alcohol and stale cigarettes wafts Jay's nostrils to the point he almost gags.  
“What's in it for you? Huh?” Jay yells in his face.   
“I don't know what you're talking about.” Sean slurs with a snicker.   
“Oh you don't know what I'm talking about? Well maybe these will refresh your memory.” He yells again; shoving the pictures of his mom's stables in his face, along with the pictures of Erin’s childhood bedroom.   
“Do these refresh your memory, or have you fried every fucking one of your brain cells?” Jay yells, and Sean lets out another snicker, before Jay slams his body back against the bars of the cell, and delivers one punch to his jaw. He hears something crack, as Sean screams out in pain. Normally he'd care more, but not now, not when Erin almost left, and almost died because of them.  
“So I painted some words on the floor of your ma's stables, I was just supposed to scare her off.”   
“Was Pugliese the one who paid you to just scare her off?” Al asks from outside the cell.   
“I don't know who that is.” Sean says, and then he cries out as Jay pushes him into the bars harder.   
He doesn't know how long he's in their with him, before his phone rings, breaking him from his blinding rage. He throws Sean to the ground, and walks out of the cell; slamming the door behind him. He looks down at his phone, and answers it quickly.   
“Kim, what's wrong?” He says; worriedly.  
“Jay you need to get here now.” Kim says, and he races out of the district.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: Don’t be mad, and please review. I'll try to get more out as soon as I can. I hope everyone's having a good week, and have a great weekend. Much Love!


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: This chapter is nothing special just a filler, and no cliffhanger. I hope you still like it, and if you do please review. If not, please keep it to yourself. Thank You!   
XXXXXX   
When he gets back to the hospital, he runs to Erin's room. Kim, Ms. Belle, and the doctor are standing next to the hospital bed, where Erin is still laying. She looks so small, with all different kinds of wires and tubes hooked up to her, and various different machines. Her pale skin appears to have a grey tinge to it, and she almost matches the color of the sheets. He gets chills looking at her unconscious form, and he thinks about how she must be freezing even more than she usually is. The steady beeping coming from one of the machines calms him a little, as he walks to stand at the foot of her bed.   
“What happened?” He asks, and his mom looks from Erin to him.   
“I was talking to Erin after you left, and she started coughing really hard, she was struggling to breath, and then her eyes rolled back.” Kim says  
“She has what's often called delayed drowning.” The doctor says  
“What does that mean? Is it why she lost consciousness?”   
“It means she still has fluid in her lungs, and she's not getting enough oxygen in. Sudden exhaustion can be a symptom of delayed drowning, but the loss of consciousness was likely also due to the amount of stress she been under as well.”  
“So what are you going to do for her?” He asks next  
“Provide her with more oxygen, continue to give her IV fluids and antibiotics.” She says, as Jay sits down on the edge of the bed; looking at Erin.  
“We're actually going to get some x rays of her chest right now, to see just how much fluid is still in her lungs, and if her treatment needs to be more aggressive. You can wait here, and we'll bring her right back.” The doctor adds when two nurses joins them in the room. Ms. Belle, Jay, and Kim either stand or sit off to the side of the room as they wheel Erin out.   
“I shouldn't have left.” Jay says after a few minutes.   
“Don't do that Jay, even if you were here there's nothing you could have done.” Ms. Belle says, standing up from the chair and giving him a hug.   
“Going to the district was just a waste of time anyways. I ended doing something I wouldn't normally do, just to get nothing. I could have been here for her.” He says, as his mother backs away from him.  
“Jay-" Kim starts but he walks out of the room.   
He comes back just as the doctor and nurses bring Erin back to the room.   
“Erin has a small amount of fluid left in her lungs, but it should clear quickly.”   
“So how long will she have to stay here, like this?” He asks; nodding over the bed.   
“We’ll keep her on the ventilator for twenty four hours, and if all goes well she can leave in a few days.” The doctor says, and Kim, and Ms. Belle nod. Jay goes to sit in a chair next to the bed, and takes Erin's small, cold hand in his. He doesn't even notice the doctor leave, as he brings her hand up a little, and bends to press a gentle kiss to her palm. He scoots closer to the bed, and pretty much stays there for the days to follow.   
XXXXXX   
Her hand is being weighed down, much like it has been the last two days, but now the weight is heavier. She turns her head to the side, as she opens her eyes. A weak smile tugs at her lips, seeing his messy, wavy brown hair. One of his arms is folded over hers, their fingers are laced together, and his head is laying half on the bed, and half on her forearm. Her wrist hurts a little, but she doesn't dare to move; wanting to let him sleep. She even tries to stifle her coughs, trying not to wake him. A knock at the door, brings her attention away from her man, and over to the front of the room.   
“Hey.” Erin says, her voice still a little raspier than usual.   
“Hey.” Kim says; looking at Jay briefly before looking back up at Erin.   
“Has he gone home yet?” She asks  
“Not that I know of, I tried getting him to go for a few hours this morning, but he refused, and I don't really have the energy to argue.” Erin replies.   
“Should I try? Maybe he'd be more willing to leave if I stayed with you while he goes to take a shower, and get some sleep, in a bed.”   
“Maybe.” Erin says, looking down at Jay again. She moves the hand that's under his head a little, and runs her other hand through his hair; being careful not to rip the IV out.   
“Jay.” Erin says, and he stirs a little, but doesn't wake up.   
“Jay, babe.” She says; pulling her hand out from under his head. He slowly sits up, and rubs his eyes, and she softly caresses the stubble along his jaw briefly before pulling away.   
“Is everything ok?” Jay asks, with a yawn.   
“Yeah, we just thought maybe you'd want to go home for a bit while I'm here.”   
“No I'm good.”   
“Jay.” Erin says  
“I'm not leaving.” Jay says.   
“I'm fine Jay, go home, take a shower, eat, and get some sleep.”   
“I can eat, and sleep here.”   
“No you can buy food, refuse to touch it, and rest your eyes here, but that's not enough.” Kim says  
“We'll be ok, go home, and at least shower.” Erin says, picking up his hand, and placing a kiss to the back of it.   
“Fine.” He gives in; knowing they won't give up otherwise. Kim and Erin start talking about the wedding as he leaves.   
XXXXXX   
After taking a shower, and taking care of Carly and Chance he goes back to the hospital. He walks into her room, and sees her sleeping peacefully, and Kim is sitting in the same spot as before, with her feet propped up on the edge of the bed. She's looking at the TV in corner of the room, and they laugh as they hear Ross yell ‘Pivot! Pivot!’. He shakes his head, as he makes his way to his chair next to Erin.   
“I get that it's a good show, but do you two watch anything else? I swear I've seen or heard this episode twenty times in the last three months.”   
“You know you love it.” Kim says. The episode finishes, and Kim turns the TV off.   
“After you left the doctor came in.”   
“Yeah, what'd she say?”   
“She said Erin should be able to be discharged tomorrow.” Kim says, and Jay just nods. She tilts her head slightly, and her eyebrows furrow in confusion.   
“I thought you'd be just as happy as she was to hear that.”   
“I am happy.”   
“But?”   
“I'm just worried about her.”   
“You really care about her, don't you?” Kim asks, even though she knows what he'll say. He doesn't answer, instead looking at Erin sleeping, and the look in his eyes is answer enough for Kim, but he eventually nods as he looks back at his friend.   
“I've never felt this way before, I thought I did, but this.” He says looking back at Erin, “How I feel about her is different.” He finishes.  
“You're always going to worry about the ones you love Jay, that's just how it is, and that's who you are.” Kim says with a smile, and Jay looks at her again, he doesn’t say anything else, but he smiles.   
Erin opens her eyes about a hour later, and sees Jay sitting in the corner looking at something on his phone. He's wearing a zip up hoodie, and a pair of sweatpants; his hair is combed, but he still has the stubble along his jaw.   
“You didn't shave?” She asks, groggily.   
“I thought you'd like the scruff.” He whispers jokingly; rubbing his hand over the hair on his face, as he stands up, and kisses her forehead.   
“Maybe I do, I just figured you didn't, and you only had it because you've been too busy fussing over me.” She says   
“I don't know, I kind of like it, it adds to my rugged good looks.” He says confidently, and she chuckles lightly.   
XXXXXX  
The next day Jay walks back into her room, after talking to Kim, and Erin's getting dressed in some of Kim's clothes that she brought for her yesterday.  
“Hey.” He says to her  
“Hey.” She says; turning around just as she puts on the shirt.   
“They, uh got the cab out of the river, but we’re going to have to get you all new clothes.” He says, and she nods; putting on the pair sweatpants.  
“I kind of figured they wouldn't be salvageable.”   
“I can take you shopping whenever you feel up to it.” He adds.   
“You don't have to take me shopping Jay, I have plenty of clothes at home.” She says, and he looks confused for a minute, knowing she packed everything from the cabin. Then he realizes she's talking about her home, in Chicago, away from him. He can't stop the sad, worried look he gives her.   
“You're still leaving?”   
“Not right now, but once they find Charlie I will be.” She says softly. She knows he doesn't want her to leave, but she has to go home at some point. She hopes if she pushes him away now, it'll hurt them less when she actually has to go.   
He's confused, and hurt, but he tries pushing his feelings down.   
“Right.” He says bitterly as he picks up the bag of clothes from Kim, and turns to leave. She has to fight back the tears threatening to spill from her eyes as she goes to follow him.   
XXXXXX  
“My mom said she dropped off some soup for you.”   
“I'm just going to take a shower first.” She says, and he nods, before she walks to the bedroom.   
When she comes back out, she goes to the living room, and he has two bowls sitting next to each other on the coffee table. She goes to sit next to him, just as he picks his bowl up.   
“I can warm it up a little more if you'd like.” He says after she takes the first spoonful.   
“It's good, thank you.” She says.   
He goes to take a shower once they finish, and Erin takes their bowls to the kitchen, and puts them in the sink. She goes back to the living room, and curls up against the arm of the couch.   
When he gets back out, he goes to sit on the couch where she's still up watching Friends with a blank, tired expression on her face. She's so scrunched up, that even when he lays out, his feet just barely touch her legs. After another episode, he looks over at her, and she's sleeping. He picks up the remote, and turns the volume down as he sits up. He stands from the couch; scooping her up, and taking her to her room. He feels how cold her skin is through the thin fabric of his shirt when she cuddles into him, right before he lays her down gently. He pulls the blankets over her, and tucks in the side; hoping to warm her up.   
Jay goes back out to the living room, and turns on a baseball game. He falls asleep at some point, but wakes up and goes to grab the gun attached to the underside of the coffee table, when he hears someone come in the front door.   
“Woah, don't shoot.” He hears his brother say and then the lights turn on.   
“I'm just dropping off some food from mom, didn't you hear me knock?” Will adds  
“Yeah, I was just hoping you'd go away.” Jay says   
“Where's Erin?”   
“In her room.”   
“I thought you guys would be all cuddled up with each other, not sleeping in separate rooms.” Will says, and Jay just nods.   
“You want to talk about it?” Will asks, walking into the kitchen.   
“No.” He answers simply.  
“I was told to check up on her too, how's she doing?” Will asks, putting the food down.   
“I'm fine, just tired.” Erin mumbles as she walks out the bedroom. Will can feel the tension enter the room along with her. He looks at his brother who has decided to focus on floor.   
“Right, well I'll let you eat, and go back to sleep. Talk you guys later.”   
“Thanks.” Erin says  
“Thanks Will.” Jay says as his brother leaves.   
“Are you hungry?” Jay asks  
“Not really, I just came to get some water, and then I want to go back to sleep.”   
“Ok.” He says, starting to put the food in the fridge.  
“You’re not going to eat?” She asks when she gets back from locking the door. He points to the plastic container still on the counter, and she nods.   
“Jay I-" She begins  
“I want to talk, but I think we're both too tired to have any kind of rational conversation right now.” He says. She nods again, and leaves the kitchen. She brushes her teeth, and lays back down.   
He eats, and then goes to his room. He takes off his shirt, and throws it at the hamper. It lands on the floor, but he and he just keeps walking to the bathroom to brush his teeth, and then he goes to climbs into bed. He turns on the TV, and attempts to go back to sleep, but just like her he ends up staring at his ceiling for a while, before he decides to get up.   
XXXXXX


	13. Chapter 13

He walks out of his room, and towards the living room, where he sees her sitting on a chair facing the easel. Her hand is effortlessly moving a paint brush against the once plain white canvas. She stops; setting the brush down, and sweeping her hair up into a messy bun on the top of her head. He notices then the white cords coming out of her ears, and as he gets closer he hears her humming along to whatever song is playing. The sun is starting to rise, casting a warm, natural glow throughout the house. He stops a few feet behind her, and just watches the natural movements of her wrist. He’s so memorized, that he doesn't see her other hand move up to remove one of her ear buds.   
“Couldn't sleep?” She asks as she dips the brush in a spot of light blue paint.   
“Not really.” He answers   
“Me either.” She says sadly; putting the brush down again, and turning to face him. He doesn't mean for it to be out loud, but a light chuckle escapes his lips as he takes in the light blue smudge on her cheek.   
“What?” She asks confused.   
“You have some paint on your face.” He says; pointing to the same area on his face. First she wipes at her left cheek, and he shakes his head.  
“Other side.” He says, and she swipes but somehow completely misses the smudge. He steps forward some, until there's not much space between them. He cautiously cups her face, and rubs the paint off of her cheek. Their eyes lock on each other's as his thumb moves slowly over her skin.   
“Thanks.” She says when he steps away, and he nods.   
“So we're really doing this?” She asks after a few moments   
“What?”   
“Going back to how it was before we got together. I get that you're upset that I'm not staying, but what did you think Jay? Did you really think we were going to stay in this bubble forever? We have our lives to go back to.”   
“I just thought that maybe we'd be a part of each other's lives. I thought that we could give this an actual shot one day. But I guess I'm the only that saw this as more than a few convenient hook ups to pass the time.”   
“Is that what you think this is to me? Just a convenient hook up?”   
“Am I wrong?”   
“Yes.” She yells, then the room goes silent.  
“I want to give us a shot too, and be a part of your life Jay.” She says after a few minutes.  
“Then why are you pushing me away?” He asks; stepping towards her again. She looks down, and wipes some of the drying paint off her hands, and onto the old rag he gave her for when she was painting. He tilts her chin up, and she looks at him; tears pooling in her eyes.   
“Is there something you're not telling me?” He asks and she shakes her head as a tear makes it way down her cheek, and he wipes it away quickly.   
“Then what is it?”   
“I thought it would be easier to push you away now rather than wait until I actually have to go home.” She says; looking back down as more tears fall from her eyes.   
“Easier for who?” Jay asks calmly.   
“Both of us.”   
“Well it's not easier for me.”   
“Me either.” She says honestly.  
“But what about when they find Charlie? Whether it’s a week, a month or a year, I have friends, and family in Chicago too Jay. Staying together, and getting closer is just going to make it harder when we have to say goodbye.”   
“Who says we have to say goodbye?”   
She shrugs, and looks up at him with tears still streaming down her face.  
“What do you say we try to get some sleep right now?” He suggests, and she nods.   
“Jay.” She says as he takes her hand, and turns to go to his room. He stops and looks back at her. She cups his jaw gently and silently asks permission before she leans in and kisses him slowly.  
“I'm sorry, for everything.” She whispers against his lips, and then he leans in and kisses her back, and they walk to his room.   
He pulls the curtains closed, before joining her on the bed. She cuddles into his side, and he wraps his arm around her back, and places a kiss to her temple, her eyes close as his lips linger on her skin. They fall asleep quickly, and stay sleeping until Jay’s phone rings. He rubs his eyes with one hand, while reaching to silence the phone with the other. Erin remains sound asleep against him, and he gently pries himself from the bed to take the call in the hall.   
“Hello.” He whispers as he quietly closes the door behind him.   
“Jay they got him.” Antonio says in the phone.   
“Who?” Jay asks groggily.   
“Charlie.”   
“That's uh great. When?” He says and asks groggily; still half asleep.  
“I guess he got desperate, and went to Erin's apartment himself last night. Sergeant Voight had camera's set up inside, and was able to get his team to apprehend him.” Antonio says. Jay doesn't reply, of course he's relieved that the man threatening Erin is back behind bars, but his heart clenches as he goes back to the conversation they had just hours ago. Once he tells her that Charlie's been caught, she'll go back to Chicago. He knows how scared she is, and knows that he needs to tell her, but part of him wants to keep her here as long as possible.   
After hanging up with Antonio, he goes back into his room. He lays back down beside her, and she wastes no time snuggling into his side once again.   
XXXXXX   
A couple days later Jay asks Kim to come over again while he goes back to practice. To his surprise she says yes right away, no questions asked, and he goes to get out of bed. But Erin's hands snake around his midsection, and she presses her bare chest into his back.   
“Are you sure you're ok with me going to practice? Cause I can go back next week.”   
“Yes, I just wanted to give you a kiss before you left.”   
“I'm not leaving for a little bit, but I was going to take a shower and get ready.” He says, as she leans to give him a quick peck.   
“Mind if I join you?”   
“I will never say no to that question, and if I do, you know where the guns are.” He says, and she smacks his chest lightly. They make their way to the bathroom, and get in the shower.   
Jay gets out before her, and he gives her a kiss as he leaves. After he gets dressed, he goes out to the living room just as there's a light knock at the door. He walks over to the front door, and opens it. It's Kim, and she's giving a questioning look.   
“Hey thanks for this Kim.”   
“You're welcome.” She says, walking past him.   
“I just have one question.” She adds; turning back around to face him as he closes the door.   
“I figured you'd have more than one, but what is it.”   
“I was trying to figure it out on my own, as to why you asked me to come, and hang out with her, and the only thing I could think of was that you haven't told her. So my question is why?” She says.   
Erin has gotten out of the shower, and thrown on a t shirt, and a pair of Jay's boxers. She then exits his room, and walks to where she hears Jay and Kim talking. The smile on her face falls as she hears what they're talking about, and she steps into the guest room so they don't see her. Jay looks down the hall, and doesn't see or hear her so he answers.   
“I don't know how to tell her Kim. I've tried several times over the last couple of days, but this selfish part of me keeps me from getting the words out.”   
“Why? She'll be so relieved when hears that Charlie's been caught.” Kim says, and Erin gasps quietly, and covers her mouth with her hand.   
“She'll leave Kim.”   
“She deserves to know Jay.”  
“I know.” He says looking down, and rubbing the back of his neck.  
“So either you tell her or I will, because keeping this from her is wrong.” Kim says as she sits down.  
“Ok.” Jay says, but he doesn't know that Erin is already calling Antonio. She walks into the bathroom, so Kim and Jay don't hear her.   
“Hey Antonio.”   
“Hi Erin.”   
“I'm sorry to bother you, but I just found out about Charlie, and I was wondering if you were going to Chicago this weekend?”   
“You're not bothering me. I was actually supposed to go next week, but I can give you a ride if you need.”   
“I can pay you when we get there.”   
“That won't be necessary Erin, when would you like to leave?”   
“As soon as possible please?”   
“I'll just drop my kids off at home, and then I'll be there.”   
“Thank you Antonio.” She says before hanging up. She blinks back the tears forming in her eyes, and leaves the bathroom. She goes back to Jay's room, and switches the boxers for sweatpants then going back out. As she gets out to the living room she sees that Jay has left.   
“Hey.” Kim says cheerfully with a smile on her face, but when she sees the sad look on Erin face, her expression becomes more serious.   
“Are you ok?” Kim asks, and Erin shakes her head.   
“How long have you guys known?”   
“Erin he-"   
“How long Kim?” Erin asks a little more sternly, her voice cracking as she tries control all the emotions coursing through her.  
“Three days.” Kim answers looking down  
“I wish he would have just told me.”   
“He wanted to.”   
“But he didn't Kim.” She says quietly  
“I called Antonio, and he's going to give me a ride home.” She adds  
“You're not going to say bye to him.”   
“I'll call him when I get to Chicago, but I can't see him.”   
“Ok.” Kim says sadly knowing how heartbroken Jay will be. Erin attaches Chances leash just as there's a knock at the door.   
“That'll be Antonio.” Erin says with a sad smile, as Kim stands from the chair, and goes to give her a hug.  
“You've been a great friend to me Erin, and I hope we can still be friends after this.” She says as she back away.  
“You too, thank you for everything and I'll text you when I get home, maybe you come visit Chicago after your wedding.”   
“Yeah, and you're still coming to the wedding right?”  
“If you'll have me still.”   
“Of course.” Kim says  
“Then I'll see you then.”   
“Ok see you then.” Kim says as Erin opens the door, and leaves.   
XXXXXX   
When Jay gets home, he expects to see Kim and Erin sitting in the living room watching a movie or Friends, but they're not. He proceeds to the kitchen, and finds Kim sitting at the kitchen table nursing a cup of coffee.   
“Hey, where's Erin?” He asks with a weak smile still on his face.   
“I'm sorry Jay.”   
“What?”  
“She heard us talking before you left. She called and asked Antonio to take her home.”   
“She left?” He asks sadly, and Kim nods.  
“About a hour and a half ago.”   
“Thanks for staying, and letting me know.” Jay says leaning against the counter.   
“I'm sorry Jay.” She says, as she gets up and walks to stand by him, and he nods.   
Kim leaves not longer after, and Jay stays frozen in place for a bit. He gets broken from his thoughts, when he hears Carly whine at the back door. He goes to let her out, and looks over at the easel with Erin's most recent painting still sitting on it. He lets Carly back in, and she goes to lay on the her bed in front of the fireplace, and whines as she puts her head down. He bends down and pets her head before he goes to the kitchen to get himself a drink, but ends up grabbing the six pack of beer from the fridge, and taking it back to the living room. He chugs one bottle before he plops down on the couch, and turns the TV on. He keeps the sports channel on briefly before he starts flipping through the channels. Then he gets to TBS, and Friends is on. He almost goes past it, but then he's putting the remote down, and grabbing another bottle. He pops the cap off with ease, as he looks at the chair. Just as Ross says   
‘This can't be it.’   
“This can't be it.” Jay repeats.   
‘Then how come it is?’ Rachel says, as Jay takes a swig.   
XXXXXX


	14. Chapter 14

Nadia gently pushes the door to her guest bedroom open, with a cup of coffee in both of her hands. Erin's so busy looking at the half dozen dresses on the bed that she doesn't even notice her come in.   
“Hey.” Nadia says, and Erin looks over at her.   
“Hey, which one?”   
“Have you slept at all?” Nadia asks.   
Erin nods and says “A little.” Nadia walks over to stand beside her, and hands her one of the mugs as she looks at the dresses.   
“This one.” She says; picking up one of the dresses.   
“Thanks.” Erin says taking the dress from her, and replacing the plastic protective bag over it.   
“When are you coming back?” Nadia asks  
“Sunday.” Erin says   
“Why so soon?”   
“I'm looking at that apartment on Monday, and then I have an interview right after.”   
“You know you don't have to rush into getting a job or an apartment so soon, you know you can take some time.”   
“I've had time, and I need to get a new apartment Nadia.”   
“You can stay here, or let Hank get you a new apartment like he offered.”   
“No I can't do that to either of you.”  
“Well there's always the third option.”   
“What?” Erin asks confused.   
“You could stay in Wisconsin, and live with him.” Nadia says with a weak smile.  
“We’re not starting this again.” Erin says, hanging up the rest of the dresses back up in the closet.   
“So we're just never going to talk about this?”   
“What's there to talk about?”   
“Come on, let's start with something small, like what his name is?” Nadia says giving her a stern look. Erin lets out a sigh, before she says  
“His name is Jay.” Her heart both constricting, and fluttering just saying his name.   
“What’s he like?” Nadia asks.   
“I really don't want to talk about him Nadia, please?”   
“Do you love him?” Nadia asks and Erin shrugs even though she knows she does.  
“Erin, you're my best friend, my sister really. We've seen each other through a lot, so I know first hand that no one deserves happiness more than you.” Nadia says as she goes to give Erin a quick hug.   
“And as much as I've missed having you here, in Chicago. I've realized in the last two weeks that this isn't where your heart is anymore.”   
“I can't stay there Nads.”   
“Why?”   
“I'm the one who ran, I left, and I didn't even say goodbye.”   
“If he loves you like you love him, he'll forgive you, and if he doesn't than I'll come up there myself, kick his ass, and then bring you back home.” Nadia says seriously, and Erin chuckles sadly.   
“Seriously Erin, go get your man, tell him you love him, go to this wedding together, and then you two get married soon and have ridiculously beautiful babies.” Nadia says, and Erin raises her eyebrow at her.   
She goes to the bathroom, and grabs all of her makeup, before throwing it all in it's own bag. When she's got everything packed she goes out to the living room. Nadia is sitting on the couch petting Chance who has his leash on.   
“Why is his leash on?”   
“He misses the one he loves too.” Nadia says with a laugh, and Erin rolls her eyes as she picks up the other end of his leash, and goes to leave.   
XXXXXX   
The last three nights he's had the same dream.  
‘She kisses the tip of his nose, then his cheek, his jaw, and finally his lips. He keeps his eyes closed, even as the rest of his body awakens and reacts to her touch. He breaks away from her lips just to pepper kisses up and down her neck. He can feel her dimple cave against the side of his head, as she smiles. Her fingers raking through his hair. He nips at her pulse before going back to her lips for another slow kiss. She lays her head down on the pillow, and he does the same; looking at her, her eyes still closed, and her chest still heaving. He reaches over, and runs his hand down the side of her face before tucking some of her hair behind her ear. Her eyelashes flutter, and she's about to open her eyes.’ Then everything goes black.  
He groans as he rubs his hand up and down his face. The thick stubble on his jaw, and upper lip, pricking his fingers, as they go over the coarse red hair. Today his phone blaring obnoxiously from somewhere next to him takes him from her. He extends his hand out; maneuvering it around the nightstand, without lifting his aching head or opening his eyes. His hand hitting one of the beer bottles, and a glass set on top of the nightstand, causes his eyes to shoot open, and he attempts to catch it as it falls, but his reflexes are off, and the glass smashes as it hits the floor. Shit he mutters loudly, as the phone starts up again. Carly comes to his bedroom door, and starts to bark. It's all too much, and he yells.   
“Hello?” He snaps into the phone as Carly continues to bark from the doorway.  
“Carly!” He yells; she whines, ducks her head, and tucks her tail between her legs as she walks back towards the living room.   
“Get to the precinct now Jay.” Al yells at him. There's no room for argument as his uncle and sergeant hangs up. He throws his phone off to the side, and swings his legs over the edge of the bed. Forgetting that there's glass on the floor, he goes to stand up and steps right on a shard. He pulls it out; blood already running down the arch of his foot towards his heel. He moves to the other side of the bed, gets up, and goes to the bathroom. Grabbing the bottle of rubbing alcohol out of the medicine cabinet before sitting on the edge of the tub, he pours a good amount on his foot, and then goes to the sink, and throws some water on his face, and lets it just run down, as he looks at his reflection in the mirror. Eventually he gets dressed, and cleans up the glass in the room before he goes to the district.   
XXXXXX  
“Did we get a case?” Jay asks as he looks back at the Kevin, and Antonio working, and he walks into his uncle's office.   
“That's not your concern at the moment, close the door, and have a seat.” Al says sternly   
“Since when is a new case not my concern? In case you haven't noticed the last case I was on is closed. I am a part of this unit aren't I?” Jay asks   
“Since you didn't answer your phone this morning, when we got this case, I wasn't sure you still wanted to be a part of this unit anymore Jay.”   
“So I over slept.”   
“Since when do you over sleep?”  
“It's one day, you act like I've coming in late everyday since coming back.”   
“No, but you've had days where you're hung over.”   
“I still get my work done.”   
“Yeah while you're on desk duty, but you can't be sent out into the field like this. You're not focused, not to mention irritable. I thought shoving papers, would help you pull yourself together but that's obviously not happening.”   
“So what’d you call me in for?”   
“I was going to suspend you, but I'll give you a warning, you pull shit like this again, and you're out.” He says, and Jay leans forward and puts his head in his hands. There's a few minutes of silence, before either of them says anything.  
“That's fair.” Jay says, ashamed, knowing his uncle is right.   
“It's more than fair Jay.” Al says sternly, as he comes to lean on the front of his desk.   
“You've come a long way from how you were when you came back home, and I know this situation is completely different, but you're digging a very similar hole, and no one wants to see you go back there. You're going to be damn good police Jay, and I know one day you'll get the chance to prove that, you've just hit a rough patch.” Al adds. His voice is softening with every word, and he extends hand out to give a gentle squeeze to his nephew's shoulder.   
“Thanks uncle Al.” Jay says as he stands from the chair.  
“Jay.” Al says, and Jay turns back to face his uncle.   
“Have you tried getting in touch with her?” Al asks, and Jay shakes his head.   
“You should, she be feeling the same way.”   
“And what if she doesn't.”   
“At least you'll know how she feels.”   
Jay’s head hangs low as he walks through the bullpen, and goes to his desk. He spends the day filing paperwork much like he has for the last two weeks.   
“Jay are you done?” Al asks when he sees his nephew staring at the blank computer screen.   
“Yeah, is there something else I can do?” Jay asks  
“No, I sent Kevin and Antonio out early to do what they need to for the wedding tomorrow. Go home.” Al says and Jay nods, and gets up to leave the district. He goes to the town flower shop, and gets a bouquet of daisies, before going to the cemetery. He parks his truck, gets out, and walks to her gravestone.   
“Hey Nana.” He says with a sad smile.   
“Sorry I haven't been by in a while.”   
“I met someone. You would have loved her. She's an artist. She's stubborn, smart, and feisty. We couldn't stand each other at first, then something changed.” He says with a sad smile, before he continues.   
“Then I messed it up, and I wish you were here and could tell me what to do to fix it, and get her back Nana.”  
“She'd tell you that sitting here on your ass, and throwing yourself a pity party isn't going to get you anywhere.” Jay hears his grandpa say from behind him.  
“Hey gramps, I didn't know you were there.”   
“I never thought of you as much of a quitter Jay.”   
“I didn't quit.”   
“Well I haven't seen you try and fight for her.”   
“She left because I lied to her, and I don't know how to fix things.”   
“You love her?” James asks, and Jay doesn't even think twice before nodding. James nods once as he puts his bouquet down next to Jay's, and he rubs the top of gravestone.   
“I know it's soon but-"   
“You've heard the story about how I proposed to your grandmother six months after we started dating.” James says and Jay nods again.   
“When she said yes, I swore I had never been happier, even with everyone saying we were going too fast.” He says sitting next to his grandson.   
“I didn’t care, because I fell in love with her, and I didn't want to ever live without her. I can't imagine how I would have felt about her if we had locked in a house for three months ” He says, gently running his hand over his wife's name, and Jay looks down at his hands.  
“A few weeks after I had proposed, I got shot in shoulder, it was nothing but a flesh wound, but I didn't want to worry her, so I kept it to myself. My partner, and his wife came by a couple days later, and your grandma found out. She was so upset with me that she gave me the ring back, and left.”   
“What'd you do?” Jay asks  
“I gave her some time, and space, and thought about how I would have felt if she kept something of that nature from me. I went to her parents house the next day, and apologized, and told her how much I loved her. She was hesitant at first, but she came home that night, and I put her ring back on, and we got married two months later.”   
“I don't know what to do to make things better.”   
“Don't over think it Jay, just go to her, and tell her how you feel.”   
“Thanks Grandpa.” Jay says as he stands up, and turns to go back to his truck.   
“Jay, just don't keep secrets from her, even if you're just trying to protect her, it'll just back to bite you in the ass.” James says, and Jay nods before leaving the cemetery.   
XXXXXX  
When Jay goes to practice, Will is standing on the sidelines, and has Kenzie in his arms, as Kenny yells for the kids to start their warmups.   
“Hey, I wasn't sure you were going to be here.” Will says as Jay walks up to them. Kenny nods at Jay, and he nods back.   
“Why wouldn't I be here?” He asks  
“Oh I don't know maybe because you're standing up in one of your best friend's wedding tomorrow.”   
“Hi Kenz.” He says with a smile, ignoring his brother's statement, as he sees his niece start to wake up in his brother's arms, and he gently pokes her side; causing her to giggle.  
“Anyways I have a favor to ask."   
“Ok.”   
“Nat has an appointment in a hour, and we won't be able to pick them up, so we were wondering if they could hang out with you until we're done.”   
“Yeah that's fine.” Jay says, as he takes Kenzie from him.   
“Great thanks, bye Kenzie I love you.” Will says as he walks away.   
“Bye daddy.” She mumbles as she rubs her face on Jay's shirt. Jay puts her down, and she stays right by him for the entire practice. But at the end when the team huddles up she sits on the bench.   
“Uncle Jay where are we going?” She asks as Jay buckles her into her booster seat.  
“To my house.”   
“Is Erin going to be there?”  
“No.” He says, and surprisingly she doesn't ask any more questions.  
He unlocks the front door, and lets Owen, and Kenzie walk in first, and then locking the door behind him. He sets his keys down, and that's when he hears something that didn't come from any of them. Then he hears it again, but this time its followed by his mom's calm voice.   
“Mom?” He says, and she waves her hand from behind the couch.   
“What are you doing?” He asks as they walk closer to her.   
“I originally came to check on you, but then I saw your truck was gone, and I remembered you had practice, so I came in to make sure you had food, and your tux was ready for tomorrow. It's a good thing I did.” She says; petting Carly's head. Jay comes to stand just behind his mom, and sees what she's referring to. Carly is laying on her side, panting, and just beside her are 2 puppies, both gold and white like Carly. Kenzie squeals in excitement when she sees the babies.  
“Shh bug, we don't want to scare Carly or the babies.” Ms. Belle says, even though she knows the puppies can't hear yet, she still doesn't want Carly to stress.   
“Sorry Carly, sorry puppies.” Kenzie says  
“Can we hold them?” Owen asks.  
“Not yet sweetheart, we should probably wait a couple weeks.” Ms. Belle says  
Jay just stood in shock, and felt even worse about yelling at her before he left, now that he knows why.  
“That's why she was acting so anxious earlier.”   
“What?” Ms. Belle says  
“She came to my room when uncle Al called me, and she was barking. I yelled at her, and she ran off, I should have known something was going on, she rarely barks.” He says kneeling down near his dog's head, and petting her. She licks his hand quickly, before her whole body tenses.   
“Is she ok?”   
“She's having another contraction. I called Hailey, but Bailey answered, she said she's doing an emergency surgery, but she'll have her call when she's done.”   
“How long have you been here?”   
“About half hour, she already had both of them, when I came in.” She says just as Carly pushes her third puppy out. She immediately lifts her back leg, and starts to clean her newest baby, and soon it lets out a squeal.  
“When I got her as a puppy, the shelter told me she was spayed, and she's never bled.” Jay says looking at the two little creatures squirming around in front of his dog.  
“Maybe they assumed she was since she was an older puppy.” Ms. Belle says.   
Once Carly's done with the third puppy, she licks the two older ones briefly before laying her head back down.   
Eventually they all move to the couch, and let Carly be, checking her periodically to make sure she's not having another one. After another couple hours, she has a total of five, and they think she's done since she's stopped panting, and is actually sleeping with the puppies moving around near her chest, and belly.   
“Look uncle Jay that one looks like Chance.” Kenzie says pointing to the only black and tan puppy.   
“Yeah it does Kenz.”   
“Where are Chance and Erin anyway?” Owen asks  
“They had to go home.” Jay says, and Kenzie gives him a sad look; tears immediately pooling in her eyes and her lip quivering before she breaks down, and runs to her grandma. Ms. Belle picks her up, kisses her cheek, and rubs her back, trying to calm her down. There's a knock at the door, and Jay gives his mom a worried look as he makes his way around the couch.   
“I didn't mean to-" He starts; expecting it to be Nat or Will, but he stops when he sees its not them. She's looking down at the ground; her hair covering the majority of her face, and then she looks up, her hazel eyes peeking through her honey blonde strands.


	15. Chapter 15

“I didn't mean to-" He starts; expecting it to be Nat or Will, but he stops when he sees its not them. She's looking down at the ground; her hair covering the majority of her face, and then she looks up, her hazel eyes peeking through her honey blonde strands.  
XXXXXX   
She goes back and forth with herself on whether or not she should go to the cabin or straight to the hotel, the entire drive to Hayfield.   
The old brown and white wooden ‘Welcome to Hayfield’ sign has her pulling over to the side of the road, and changing the address in the GPS. She takes a deep breath, as she hears the GPS tell her to take a right in a half a mile. She looks over at Chance sitting comfortably in the passenger seat, and he tilts his head at her.   
“We should go see him right?” She asks him, and he barks, as if he understood her.   
“You just want to see Carly.” Erin says; reaching over to scratch behind his ear. She replaces her hands on the wheel, and puts the car into drive.   
Ten minutes later she's pulling onto his driveway slowly; she parks, and turns the car off. She looks at the keys in her hands, and can't stop them from trembling. She rolls the windows down half way, before getting out of the car. She closes her eyes; inhaling, and exhaling several times before she lifts her hand and knocks on the door.   
She looks down at her feet, as the door opens slowly, her heart is pounding in her chest, as she lifts her gaze, and looks at him with her hair covering her face. His eyes are wide, and she can hear how surprised his when he says   
“Erin?”   
Kenzie squirms out of her grandmother's arms, and runs to the door after hearing her uncle.   
“Erin!” She says loudly; tears still running down her face as she runs into Erin's legs. Erin squats down to envelope the little girl in a hug.   
“Hi Kenz.” She says to her, with a weak smile.  
“Uncle Jay said you had to go home.”   
“I did have to go home Kenz.”   
“Why?”   
“I had to go see my friends, and family” She says, and Kenzie looks back at her uncle.   
“Do you have to go back home again?” Kenzie asks next, and Erin looks up at Jay briefly before looking back at Kenzie.   
“I don't know Kenz.” She says, and Kenzie seems like she's going to start to cry again, but she just sniffles.   
“Did you bring Chance with you so he can see Carly's babies?” Owen asks; causing Erin to look over at him then to Jay, and back again.  
“He's in my car, but he's going to stay there for now, ok?”   
“Ok.”   
“Mom, I'm-" Jay starts, but she cuts him off.  
“I can take them to my house, and have Will pick them up from there.”   
“No I'm sure they're already on their way, I was just going to ask if you could just stay with them until they get here? We're just going to go for a walk.”   
“Of course.”   
“Thanks, bye Kenz, bye Owen.”   
“Bye uncle Jay.” They say in unison as he closes the door behind him.   
XXXXXX  
They walk along the river for a while, before stopping, and walking onto a dock. Erin looks out at the water, and Jay takes her in. He's worried about where this conversation is going to go. His palms are beginning to sweat, and his heart rate accelerates. He thinks back to his grandpa's words from earlier. ‘Don't overthink it Jay, just go to her, and tell her how you feel.’ He repeats that to himself as he takes a deep breath before he starts.  
“I'm sorry.” He says with a sigh.   
“When you were in the hospital I told you how I was afraid, and I was. After thinking I'd lost you twice, I was terrified actually. I thought that I'd be relieved when they got Charlie, but that fear intensified when Antonio told me that they'd caught him.” He says; looking down at the ground, and she looks over at him but doesn't say anything; just letting him continue.   
“And I let the fear of losing you, keep me from telling you about it, and I ended up losing you anyway.”   
“You didn't lose me Jay.”   
“Well it sure as hell felt like I have the last two weeks.” He says a little harsher as he looks up at her.   
“You left with nothing but a text letting me know you got home.”   
“I was upset Jay.” She says defensively. “You had no right keeping that from me.” She adds as she turns to walk back to the path.  
“What do you want me to say Erin? I fucked up, and I've spent the last two weeks telling myself that.” He shouts as he goes to stop her by grabbing her arm a little rougher than he'd like to admit. “I’m sorry. If I could go back and tell you I would, but I can't.” He adds a little more calmly. There's a few minutes where neither of them says anything; letting the sound of the wind blowing through the trees, and the chirping of the crickets calm them down a little before she says  
“I also overreacted, and I know I shouldn't have left like I did, no matter how I felt.” She says as she turns to face him.  
“Once the threat of Charlie was gone, I was still scared, just for a different reason.” She says, and his expression softens even more. “I’m still scared because I’m falling in love with you Jay and it scares the hell out of me. It’s new, and exciting, but it's also terrifying.” She admits, and he loosens his grip on her arm, and closes the small distance between them, so they're flush against each other. She looks at her hands as she gently places them on his chest, before looking up at him.   
“So I'm sorry too.” She says to him, and he nods. Their gaze flits between the others eyes, and lips as they both lean in. The kiss is slow, and gentle, and full of the yearning they've felt over the last two weeks.   
“I'm falling for you too.” He says against her lips; giving her another peck.   
“Just promise me one thing?” He says, and she nods.   
“No more running.” He says  
“As long as you promise not to keep things from me.”   
“Promise.”   
“Then I promise not to run anymore.” She says and he smiles just as he goes in for another kiss.   
XXXXXX   
They walk back before it gets too dark. Their hands clasped together. When they get inside they find that no one else is there. She walks over to where she sees Carly laying on her bed by fireplace.  
“They're so little, and cute. That one looks like Chance.” She says quietly; bending down to pet Carly, and he smiles down at her.   
“Kenz said that too.”   
“I should probably go get him.”   
When she gets back inside, she decides to keep him on his leash; not knowing how Carly will react to him being by the puppies. Jay goes to preheat the oven for a pizza before coming back the living room.   
Erin slowly walks Chance over to Carly, who lifts her head, and wags her tail a little. Chance's ears perk up a little more when one of the puppies grunts. The two dogs come face to face, and Chance licks her nose, and wags his tail, and then she lays her head back down, and closes her eyes. Erin and Jay both smile at the interaction. Chance licks Carly's face a couple more times, and then one of the puppies makes a noise, and he moves to sniff them, but Carly lifts her head again; this time growling lightly, causing Chance to back off. Erin lets him off his leash; deciding that Carly's just warning him.   
“I'm going to get my things, I'll be right back.” She says; poking her head in the kitchen just as the oven beeps, signaling that it's heated, and he nods.   
She goes out, grabs her bags, and brings them to the front door. She drops them just inside when she remembers to get her dress that's laid out on the back seat. She opens one of the back doors, and then she gets hit in the back of the head with something. She tries to yell for Jay, but his name comes out as more of a whisper. Her vision becomes blurred as she struggles to stay standing, and she soon falls back. The light from inside the car shows the hooded figure just before everything goes black.


	16. Chapter 16

She goes out, grabs her bags, and brings them to the front door. She drops them just inside when she remembers to get her dress that's laid out on the back seat. She opens one of the back doors, and then she gets hit in the back of the head with something. She tries to yell for Jay, but his name comes out as more of a whisper. Her vision becomes blurred as she struggles to stay standing, and she soon falls back. The light from inside the car shows the hooded figure just before everything goes black.   
XXXXXX   
Jay puts the pizza in the oven, sets the timer, and then goes to the living room. He sees her bring her bags in before muttering something, and dropping them just to the side of the door. He goes to pick them up, and takes them to his room. While there, he decides to change into something more comfortable. He takes off his shirt, and jeans; throwing them into the hamper. He puts on a pair of sweatpants, and goes back out to the living room where he hears, and soon sees Chance scratching and whining at the door. It takes two large steps to the door, and opens it; trying but failing to keep Chance inside. The ninety pound dog ducks his head, and runs through Jay's legs; running after the car speeding off Jay's driveway. Jay goes to turn the oven off, before grabbing his keys, and phone off the table next to the door, and running to his truck. He turns in the same direction as the car, and sees taillights in the distance he speeds up, and catches up to it, but the lights are not the same as the ones that he saw in his driveway. He calls his uncle as he continues to drive around aimlessly, telling himself to look out for Chance as well. The phone rings twice before Al picks up. Jay quickly rambles off what happened.  
“Go back to the cabin. I'll call Antonio, and Kevin and we'll meet you there.” Al says to his nephew, before hanging up. Jay does as he says, and goes back. Antonio actually beats him to the cabin; already walking around with his flashlight. Jay gets out of his truck; grabbing his flashlight from the glovebox, and joins Antonio. Neither of them says anything as they search the ground, that is until Antonio finds a pack of cigarettes hidden in the grass a few feet away from Erin's truck.   
“Jay, does Erin smoke?” Antonio says, and Jay lifts his gaze to look at his partner before walking over to him. He puts on a glove, and picks up the white and red box.   
“No.” Jay says as he comes to stand next to him.  
“There's only one missing.” Antonio says as he opens the top. Al and Kevin get there a few minutes later.   
“Did you get anything?” Al asks as they approach them.  
“Just a pack of cigarettes.” Antonio says, and Jay scuffs as he continues to look for something more.   
“Atwater take that back to the precinct, see if there's any prints.”   
“We don't have time for that.” Jay yells  
“We don't have time for you to argue about this Jay, go Atwater.” Al says, and Kevin leaves.   
“Jay how bout we go inside, and discuss what exactly happened” Al says.   
“No I'd rather keep looking for evidence.”   
“It wasn't a question Jay.” Al scolds, and Jay sighs before turning towards his house. Once they get inside Jay goes over the minutes leading up to seeing the car drive off.  
“Did you see the plate? Make or model of the vehicle?”   
“No.” He answers, putting his shoes on.  
“Are you sure? Take a minute to think about it.” Al says, and Jay feels his frustration continue to bubble inside him.  
“I'm sure, now can-"   
“Jay you need to come outside, he won't let me near him.”   
“Who?” Jay asks as he rushes out the door, and then he sees Chance. He's laying on the porch licking his back paw. The crimson color of blood stains the back of the dog's neck can be seen clearly even in the soft glow of the porch light.   
“Hey Hailey, can you come to Jay's?” Antonio says.   
“Chance.” Jay says as calmly as possible, and he stops biting at his paw, to look at him.   
“Erin's dog is cut up, and is bleeding.” Antonio says next, and then he nods, and hangs up; replacing his phone in his pocket.  
“Chance come.” Jay says, and Chance stands on three legs, and hops to the door. Once they're inside, they see the extent of his injuries.   
Hailey gets there quickly, and Jay picks up, and carries Chance to the closest guest bathroom.   
“Looks like he was attacked by something.” Antonio says.  
“Could be.” Hailey says, as she starts gently parting the black and tan fur on Chance's neck. Antonio stays with Hailey while she examines and stitches Chance up, and Jay and Al go back outside. They're only outside for ten minutes before Antonio comes out to get them.   
“Jay, Sarge you're going to want to see this.”   
Antonio leads them to the kitchen with a few sheets of bloody paper towel in his hand.   
“He had several pieces in his neck, and one in his back paw pad.” He says as he lays it flat on the kitchen table; showing the other two men the shards of glass. Jay carefully picks up a couple pieces one by one. He recognizes the pattern on one piece, but the red and bronze label stuck to another piece brings up old memories.   
“Antonio what brand of cigarettes was that pack you found?” He asks; still examining the glass.  
“King’s. Why?” Antonio answers, and asks. Jay doesn't say anything for a moment, before he says.   
“I think I know who took her.” He says confidently, as he goes to get his gun.   
“Care to fill us in?” Al says as they all leave the cabin.  
“Who do you know likes Red's Groove whiskey?” Jay asks once they get in the truck.   
“No one.” Antonio answers  
“Exactly, and that glass was from a bottle of Red's.” Jay says.  
“I'm not following.” Antonio says  
“I only know one person who not only likes Red's but also enjoys smoking King's.” Jay says, and Al realizes what his nephew is onto.   
“You don’t think?” Al asks, and Jay nods just as they pull onto the gravel driveway, and stop in front of the rusty chain link fence.   
XXXXXX  
Her head is pounding as she starts to open her eyes. It feels like a really bad hang over combined with withdrawal, and then that has been multiplied by a thousand. She attempts to look around, but the pain radiates from the back of her head and shoots to her neck.   
“Hello sleeping beauty.” She hears a voice say faintly from somewhere in the room, then the lights turn on, and Erin's clenches her eyes shut.   
“Who are you? What do you want?” Erin asks groggily, her voice sounding like it did when she first got the ventilator taken out at the hospital.   
“I thought I'd lost my chance at getting you, but then I saw you pull over on the side of road earlier.” She hears, and she opens her eyes slowly to take in her captor.   
“What do you want?” She repeats  
“I saw the two of you at Lottie's a couple months back, you could see it in his eyes he felt strongly about you-"   
“Did Charlie put you up to this?” She asks, and it results in a strong slap across her face. It's then that she sees his piercing blue eyes, and smells the alcohol on his breath.  
“I knew then that getting you was how I'd get back at him. He took all that I care about from me-" He starts but is interrupted by a noise from somewhere else in the house. There's a bandana placed roughly over Erin's mouth, and tied tightly at the back of her head; causing her to wince. Then the lights are turned back off, and Erin's left alone. A few minutes later she hears approaching footsteps, and hopes that it's Jay, or someone else who can help. When the person gets to the door, she sees what little light is coming in through the window behind her, reflect off something in his hand, and when he gets closer she sees that it's a knife. He goes to stand behind her just as she manages to get the bandana off of her mouth. Then Jay is at the door with his gun raised out in front of him. He reaches to turn flip the light switch without taking his eyes off of them.   
“I've only had her for two hours. For the first time in your life, I must say I'm impressed son.” He says, as Erin blinks, eyes adjusting to the light.  
“You know its so you to say some shit like while your holding a knife to someone's throat.” Jay says, and the man behind Erin snickers.  
“Whatever you have against me, why don't you take it out on me like you always have, and let her go?” Jay says, as Antonio comes to stand beside him; gun also drawn.  
“Three years, I spent three years in prison because of you, and when I got out my wife and son wouldn't talk to me, and I've been iced out here for the last ten years. I've never met my grandchildren because of you.” He says readjusting the knife against Erin's neck; sinking the blade into her skin ever so slightly, and it has tears springing to her eyes. Jay thinks quickly,   
“Don't! She's pregnant, and though you hate me, I know you wouldn't want to hurt your unborn grandchild.” Jay shouts, and Erin feels the knife loosen, but then he's pulling her hair back; forcing her to look up at him.   
“You're pregnant?” He asks, and Erin was going to nod, but felt him bring the blade closer to her skin again.   
“I’m ten weeks along.” She says when he looks down at her, and then a gun goes off. Erin feels his blood splatter against her face, and the knife drop in her lap. Antonio rushes to handcuff the man who's bitching behind her.   
“Hey, are you ok?” Jay asks as he get to her, and starts untying the rope binding her legs and arms to the chair.   
“I've been better.” She answers honestly.   
“The ambo is in route, can you go out with Antonio?” Jay asks, and Erin looks over at the Antonio, before looking back at Jay, and nodding hesitantly. Jay helps her stand up, and places a kiss to her forehead before she leaves with Antonio.   
“Should have known you'd find a way to ruin my plans.”   
“What the hell did hope to gain by taking her?” Jay yells  
“You still don't listen, just like when you were a kid. You ruined my life Jay.”   
“I didn't ruin your life Patrick, you did, you're the one the use to beat the shit out of me sometimes for no reason at all. And now you just made it worse just made your life worse with this stunt.” Jay says pulling him up to his feet.   
“You only have yourself to blame for the three years you spent in jail, and for not being a part of mom, Will, and your grandchildren's lives. They're better off without you, we're all better off without you, and I promise you if you ever come near her, or any of my family again I won't hesitate to put a bullet in your head instead.” He says before they leave the room. Jay takes him to one of the squads cars, and tells the uniformed officers to take him to the district. He watches the car disappear before he makes his way to Erin who's sitting at the back of the ambulance, with a brown blanket wrapped around her shoulders. He doesn't say anything at first, he just pulls her into him, and kisses her temple.   
“So that was your dad?” She asks as she nuzzles into his neck.   
“Unfortunately.” Jay answers.  
“How'd you know telling him I was pregnant would work?”   
“I didn't, but I figured it would distract him long enough for us to disarm him.”   
“Thank you.”   
“I'm sorry.” He says sadly, and she pulls away to look at him. One hand keeps the blanket in place, while the other goes to cup his jaw  
“Don't apologize for him Jay, this was not your fault.” She says and he nods as he again helps her stand, and they walk to his truck.   
“Aren't you going to tell them we're leaving?” Erin asks as he starts the truck.   
“I'll text them when we get home.”   
Erin falls asleep on the short ride back to the cabin, and when they get there Jay carries her inside, and lays her down on his bed. He takes his hoodie off, as he goes to check on the dogs. Carly doesn't seem to have moved at all since earlier, and Chance is laying down next to her on the rug in front of the fireplace. He turns off the kitchen lights as he makes his way back to his bedroom. Erin is sitting on the edge of the bed, taking off her jeans, and then she stands up.   
“You should sleep.” He says to her.  
“I want to shower first.” She says, and he nods as she walks into the bathroom.   
He goes to put his sweatpants, and her jeans in the hamper, and that’s when he hears her sob, even over the running water, and through the door. He doesn't bother removing his boxers before he walks in the bathroom and gets in with her. Her back is to him, and he sees the remaining dry blood from the back of head get rinsed away, and run down her back. Her shoulders shake as she continues to cry. He gently grabs her arms; turning her around before pulling her into him. She cries into his chest for a few minutes before she pulls out of his arms, and wipes her face. She grabs the body wash and squirts some of the thick blue liquid onto the purple loofa.   
“Erin don't do that.” He says to her  
“Do what?”   
“Don’t bury how you're feeling.”   
“It's fine Jay, I'm fine.”   
“Erin a hour ago you had a knife pressed against your throat, it's understandable if you're not fine. And it's ok if you need to fall apart, or break down, because I'll be right here to help you build yourself back up, but don't suppress your feelings.” He says calmly, and she looks up at him with tears or water running down her face neither of them are sure, but he pulls her into him again, and they stand under the warm stream until it runs cold. He gets out first, and grabs a towel to wrap around her body, and he pushes his boxers off, and hangs them on the towel rod attached to the wall to dry. She goes to sit on the bed, as he puts on a clean pair of boxers. He gets her one of his t shirts to put, and goes to hand it to her. She looks at him with a confused expression on her face, and a slight smirk.  
“I haven't been able to touch you in two weeks, I don't know how much longer I'll be able to control myself around you, before situations arise.” He says as seriously as he can, but he ends up lightning the mood as she gives him a smile.   
“Always the perfect gentleman.” She says, taking the shirt, and letting the towel drop to the floor, he picks it up and takes it to the hamper before climbing in the bed with her. She lays on her side, and he scoots up behind her, so her back is flush against his front. Her finger traces patterns on his arm that he has draped protectively her belly. When she stops he figures she's fallen asleep, and he soon succumbs to sleep too.  
They're woken up a few hours later by the alarm on Jay's phone, and he reluctantly pulls his arm away from her to stretch. She turns over, and kisses from his chest, and up to his lips before they both get out of bed, and start to get ready for the wedding.   
XXXXXX   
A/N: I hope you guys liked it, if you did please review. Thanks, and Much Love.


	17. Chapter 17

He goes to make some coffee, and she goes to the bathroom before joining him in the kitchen.   
“How are you feeling?” He asks as he pours coffee into the mug in her hands, and looks down at the faint pink lines on her wrists.   
“My head is pounding, but otherwise I feel fine.” She answers, and he replaces the coffee pot, before making his way to the fridge; opening the freezer, and pulling out an old fashioned ice pack. He messes with it for a second, and then hands it to her.   
“Thank you.” She says quietly as she holds the ice pack up to the back of her head, and stands on the tips of her toes to kiss him.   
“I'll go get you some aspirin.” He says; leaving the kitchen to go to his bathroom. He pulls out the bottle, and pours out to two pills. When he walks out, his phone rings, and he goes to grab it.   
“Is that mine or yours?” Erin asks as she makes her down the hall.   
“Mine.” He says as he picks it up, and answers it, not even looking at the screen, or noticing the polka dot case. ‘He must be tired still' Erin thinks.  
“Halstead.” He says, and Erin chuckles as she leans against the doorframe.  
“So that's your last name, huh good to know.” Nadia says  
He looks confused as Erin giggles.   
“Jay that's my phone.” She says, and he pulls the phone away from his ear briefly and looks at the screen, which displays a picture of Erin, and a brunette girl back to back looking over their shoulder at each other. ‘Nads' is just above the time of the phone call.   
“Hang on, don't hang up.” Nadia says, and then the phone does the facetime tone, and Jay hands Erin the phone, and takes her coffee, so she can hold the phone, and the ice pack. She presses the green button.   
“Where'd he go?” Nadia asks  
“He's right here, why?” Erin asks.   
“I want to talk to him.”   
“Nadia.” Erin says sternly  
“Erin, give him the phone please.” She says, and Erin looks at Jay, and he shrugs, and nods towards the bed.   
He puts the mug down, and takes her phone as she sits down.  
Nadia says “Damn.” Taking in Jay's shirtless chest, and Jay chuckles.   
“Nadia!” Erin yells towards the phone.   
“Here.” He says to Erin; passing her the pills.   
“Thanks.” Erin says again.   
“Hey.” He says, looking at the phone.  
“Hi.” Nadia says   
“How can I help you.”   
“Charming, I just wanted you to know that if you ever break her heart, I promise to make your life a living hell.”   
“If I break her heart I deserve whatever kind of hell you can raise.”   
“Ok great, you can hand the phone back to Erin now.”   
He nods; handing the phone back to Erin, and walking back to bathroom to take a shower.   
“With a body like that I'm assuming that ice pack is from the make up sex last night?” Nadia says once Erin looks down at the phone.   
“No.” Erin says sadly.   
“What's wrong?” Nadia asks. Erin goes over the details of last night, Nadia doesn't get a chance to respond before Jay comes out in just a towel, and looks at his phone.   
“Sorry to interrupt, but my mom, Natalie, Lexi, and Michelle are coming here to get ready with you. They should be here soon. I have to go to the hall to help hang some decorations.” He says, and she hears the silent ‘since it couldn’t be done last night' at the end. He's buttoning his jeans as he leans down to give her a kiss.   
“Are you going to be ok?” He whispers against her lips.   
“I'll be fine.” She says back, giving him another kiss; forgetting that Nadia was still on the phone.   
“Bye Nadia.” Jay says as he pulls away, and looks down at the phone.   
“Bye Jay.” Nadia says.   
“Sorry, can we talk later?” Erin says and asks.   
“Yeah of course, I'll text you later, have fun at the wedding, and then have some hot wedding sex.”   
“Goodbye Nadia.” Erin says, not being able to control the smile that makes its way onto her face.  
“You know it's going to happen.” Nadia says as Erin hangs up. She gets a pair of her sweatpants from one of her bags, and puts them on, before walking out to the living room. When she gets there she sees the Halstead women standing or sitting around the room. Erin makes a detour to the kitchen to put the ice pack away, before going to join them. Kenzie of course, runs over to Erin, and clings to her leg, and Erin runs her hand over the back of her head.   
“Good morning.” Ms. Belle says as she walks over to Erin, and gives her a hug.  
“I'm glad you came back.” She adds quietly.  
“Good morning, and I'm glad to be back.” Erin says looking up at them.   
“Jay already left, but he said he shouldn't be long.” Natalie says as she too gives her a hug.  
“ok.” Erin says   
XXXXXX  
He was nervous about leaving her, but when he gets home, and can hear them all laughing through the front door, he's glad he didn't let his worries stop him from leaving. She's sitting on the couch with Kenzie in her lap; showing her something on her iPod and Natalie is standing behind the couch wrapping a strand of Erin's hair around the curling iron, and quickly letting it drop on top of the rest of the golden waves swept to the side.   
“Don't you all look pretty.” He says, and they all look over at him, and Kenzie scoots off Erin's lap, and runs over to her uncle. He picks her up, and kisses her cheek, but she wipes it away, and says  
“Uncle Jay you're going to ruin my make up.” And everyone else in the room laughs.   
“Sorry Kenz.” He says with a smile; putting her back down, and she returns to Erin. Natalie gets done doing Erin's hair, and takes Kenzie to get their dresses on. Erin, and Jay go to his room to get dressed.   
“Babe can you zip me up please?” She asks when he comes out of the bathroom. He zips his pants, and leaves his crisp white shirt open, and his tie is hanging loose undone on his neck. He answers her by going to stand behind her; bending down and pressing his lips in between her shoulder blades, and he smiles as he feels her shiver. He zips up the dress slowly; letting his fingers glide along her smooth skin on the way up. When he's done she turns around and immediately snakes her hands around his waist, and kisses his peck.   
“You should go to the wedding like this.” She mumbles against his neck, and he chuckles.  
“You think so?” He asks as she looks up at him.   
“Mmhmm" She hums just as she places a kiss to his lips.   
“I don't think Kim would appreciate one of the groomsmen in her wedding showing up half dressed” He says  
“Fair enough.” Erin says as she walks to get her shoes. He buttons his shirt, and takes in the way her light grey strapless dress hugs her perfect body in all the right places. She picks up his jacket, and looks at him, and he gives her a smirk as he finishes adjusting his tie.  
“What's that look for?”   
“You look amazing.” He says, and she blushes, and looks down at the black jacket in her hands. He lifts her chin, and pecks her lips.   
“You don't too bad yourself, even when you're all covered up.” She says giving him another peck as he grabs his jacket from her, and places his hand at the small of her back, and guides her out of the room.   
“Are you riding with us?” Ms. Belle asks as the couple makes their way down the hall.   
“I'll take my truck just in case we leave at different times.” Jay says, and the group leaves the cabin.   
XXXXXX   
Later that night Kim practically begs Erin to go on the dance floor before she throws the bouquet.   
“Really I'm good here Kim.” She says quietly, staying in her seat at the edge of the dance floor. Kim rolls her eyes, and walks away. She gets to the group of her wedding guests waiting for her to throw the purple and white flowers. She tells them something, and they all laugh and move so they're standing in front of Erin. She's taking a sip of her wine when the bouquet hits the edge of the table, and lands in her lap. She can't help but smile as she looks down at the flowers. Eventually everyone goes back to dancing, and Erin stays seated when her phones buzzes.   
Nads-‘How's the wedding?’   
Erin- ‘My current view.*heart eye emoji*’ She replies attaching a picture of Jay dancing with Kenzie on his feet.   
Nadia- ‘That is quite possibly the most adorable thing I've ever seen.’  
Erin- ‘It's been nice, definitely different than any other wedding I've been to.’ She replies thinking of the handful of weddings she's been to, none of which had anything to do with love like this one.   
XXXXXX   
“Uncle Jay how come you're not dancing with Erin?” Kenzie asks as a new song starts.   
“I'm dancing with you Kenz.” He says back  
“Can you dance with me and Erin?”   
“Yes-” He says, but before he can finish, his niece is running over to his girlfriend. Kenzie leans in and says something. Erin looks over at him, and gives him a smile as she stands, and takes Kenzie's hand, and then they walk over to him.  
“Sending her to ask me to dance? Smooth.”   
“Uncle Jay didn't send me.” Kenzie says looking up at them from where she stands between them, and Jay nods; picking Kenzie up. He uses one hand to hold her, and wraps the other around Erin's waist so his hand is resting at the small of her back. Her hands rest on his shoulder, and bicep.   
“Alright Mackenzie, it's almost time for the sparklers.” Will comes and says taking his daughter from his brother.   
“Sparklers?” Erin asks  
“Adam and Kim are leaving for their honeymoon tonight, and we're going to stand with sparklers as they walk to the limo.” Jay answers, and she nods as they follow Will. The wedding planner, Ms. Belle, Natalie, and Nicole are either handing out or lighting the sparklers as everyone stands where the concrete meets the grass. Before Kim, and Adam come out, Erin's sparkler burns out, so Jay goes to get her another one. He hands her the unlit stick, and touches his to hers to light it. Owen grabbed one of the polaroid cameras from one of the tables inside, and takes a picture of his uncle and Erin as they kiss with their sparklers fizzling in front of them.   
Once the newlyweds drive away, everyone leaves, except for Jay, Erin, Hailey, Kevin, Nicole and the wedding planner who stay to clean up the hall before they too head home.   
XXXXXX   
Once they start the drive home Erin places her hand on his thigh, but it slowly makes its way up. When she brushes over his growing bulge, he moans her name as he grabs her hand. He debates pulling over, and taking her right there against the black leather of his front seat, but he decides against it, as he sees his driveway just in front of them. The moment they get through his front door they practically rip each other's clothes off; leaving a trail behind them as they stumble to the couch. They move quickly to remove the remaining barriers, but when he enters her everything slows, and for a moment she swears she sees stars. She wraps her legs around him, and digs her heels into his lower back as he starts moving within her. Her nails leaving red marks down his back before her hands grasp at his shoulder blades. She gasps in his ear, and his breath sputters against her neck as he picks up the pace, and sends her hurtling over the edge. The feeling of her walls clamping down on him has him finding his own release soon after. They stay there on the couch, until they come down from their highs, and catch their breath. Then he carries her to his room where they carry out a few more rounds before falling asleep in each others arms.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18   
Jay’s POV   
It’s been a little over a year and a half since Erin and I got back together. I’m sitting on our couch; thinking. I think back to six months ago.   
‘I can practically hear her thinking, even over our erratic breathing. Our naked chests still rising and falling at a quickened pace, as we come down from our high. I wait a few more minutes before I speak “I thought scrabble usually helps you tune out your thoughts, but not tonight. What’s going on babe? Tell me what’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?” I can feel her tense against me, as she processes my words. “Nothing, it just seems like this gets better every time.” She answers with a shrug. I look down at her, but her gaze stays focused on the windows, and I know she’s lying. “Not that I disagree with that, I know that’s not what you’re thinking about so seriously Er, just tell me.” I say as I sit up; putting one of my hands on her shoulder to push her into a sitting position, and the other goes to cup her jaw, and get her to look at me. She lets out a deep sigh; looking down, before looking back up, and giving me a timid smile. “Fine, I was just thinking how we’ve barely spent any time alone at our own places since you came here the night you were released from the hospital a year ago.” She whispers, and I look at her surely with a very confused look on my face. “I uh I could go-“ I begin to say but she continues “That’s the thing Jay. I want you to stay. You remember when you asked me to move in with you, that day in the break room?” She says shyly, and I just nod. “Well I don’t want you to come and go, I don’t want either of us to come and go.” I don’t say anything in response to that at first. I just crash my lips to hers, and pull her even closer to me so her bare chest is pressed flush against mine. She breaks the kiss a few moments later, and rests her forehead against mine; giving me a smile. “I don’t want either of us to come and go either.” I say as I lay her back down, and pushing into her for the third round of the night; leaving the move in conversation for the morning.’   
And now I sit here, nervously fumbling with the ring box; currently burning a hole in my pocket; waiting for her to get out of the shower, in what is now our apartment. I turn on the Blackhawks game, and pray that she gets out here in time for intermission. After another five minutes, with two minutes until intermission, she comes strutting out of our bedroom with a nothing but a t shirt on.   
“Hey I was just about to come check on you, it’s almost intermission.” I say, trying to control my breathing, as I look at the time left, and there’s just over a minute left. I stand up and meet her by the tv; giving her a brief kiss before ushering her over to the couch to sit down. I turn my head towards the TV just as the buzzer sounds, and Tommy Hawk the mascot comes out onto the ice holding a sign, my sign as the team exits the ice.   
XXXXXX  
Erin’s POV   
I’m slightly taken back by the way Jay is acting, as he guides me to the couch, but then I look up at the TV just moments after the buzzer sounds, and I see the team’s mascot holding a blank sign. But then he turns it around, and the camera zooms in on it. My breath gets caught in my throat as my brain tries to process what’s happening. The black and red sign reads ‘Erin Lindsay will you marry Jay Halstead?’ I can’t stop the tears from falling, as I look to my left and see Jay on one knee next to me.   
“Erin I know this kind of crazy, and some may even say too soon, but I don’t care about what everyone else thinks. We’ve known each other for years, we’ve been each other’s partners, back up, and best friends, and somewhere along the way I fallen in love you. And god do I love you, and I’ve known for years that you are my only one. When you said “Maybe One Day”, my reply was “Oh Definitely”, but I definitely would have never been able to guess how much one day would teach us about ourselves, or how much we would learn about each other. I’ve become a better cop, and a better man because of you. And one day I want to be able to call you my wife, and that same one day I can actually become your househusband. One day I want you to become the mother of my children. And one day I want to retire to Wisconsin with you. I want us to have tons more one days, I want us to spend the rest of our lives together. Sorry I know I’m rambling, and probably not making any sense. So Erin Lindsay will you do me the incredible honor of marrying me, and becoming my wife one day?” He says with tears shining in his eyes, as he opens the red ring box.   
“Oh definitely.” I say before leaning over; grabbing his face, and kissing him hard. We break apart after a few minutes, and he slides the ring on my finger, and it fits perfectly. This time he leans in to give me a kiss, and I deepen it. No other words are exchanged as he picks me up off the couch, and takes me to our bedroom to celebrate our engagement.   
XXXXXX  
As I lay with my head on his sweaty chest, I take in the ring on my hand.   
“Do you like it?” He asks   
“I love it, it’s beautiful.”   
“It was my mom’s.” He says, and I sit up holding the sheet to my chest.   
“What’s wrong?”   
“You think I’m good enough to wear your mom’s ring?” I ask a fresh batch of tears coming to my eyes.   
“Of course Erin, my mom would have loved you, and there’s no one better than you to wear her ring.”   
“Thank You.”   
“Thank You babe, you just made me the happiest man alive.” He says sitting up.  
XXXXXX  
Jay’s POV   
I sit up and give her a kiss, and she hums approvingly. After a few moments we’re broken from our kiss at the sound of my phone buzzing on the nightstand. I give her one more quick peck before turning to look at my phone to make sure we didn’t just catch a case or something. We didn’t, it was Adam.   
“Who is it?” Erin asks as she scoots closer to me so her bare chest is pressed to my back, and I let out a moan, as she wraps her arms around my chest, and places kisses to my shoulder.   
“It’s Adam.”   
“What’s he want?” She asks   
“He said if we were done shagging like rabbits, we should come to Molly’s to celebrate our engagement with everyone. I can’t believe everyone knows.”  
“What did you expect Jay? You had Tommy Hawk hold up a sign at the beginning of intermission. Which by the way how did you pull that one off?”   
“Touché, and I know a guy.” I say, flashing her with a grin   
“Of course you do, cause you have a guy for everything.”   
“But what do you want me to say to him, do you want to go?”   
“Yeah I want to go, so I can kill Adam.” She says giving me one more kiss before hopping off the bed to get freshened up, and ready to go. I shake my head in disbelief as I get up too.   
XXXXXX  
When we walk into Molly’s the whole bar screams congratulations, and we make our way over to our usual table near the back where most of our colleagues and friends are seating. We both get hugs, and handshakes from the unit, and some our friends from firehouse 51. I sit next to Adam, and Kevin, and watch my girl showing off her ring to Kim, Hailey, Sylvie, Gabby, and Stella, and my heart swells at the fact that she said yes, she agreed to marry me, and be partner in life.   
XXXXXX  
Another five months later   
Erin’s POV   
Kim, Hailey, and I are just finishing up the Thank You’s for everyone who came to my Bridal Shower when I have to race off to the bathroom, for the what seems like the hundredth time in today. I don’t know how long I sit there with my head in the toilet, dry heaving, before I stand up to rinse my mouth out, and wash my face. I reach under the sink to grab a dry hand towel, and knock over the box of tampons in the process. That’s when it hits me, I’m late, like really late. I try to deny it, try to blame it on stress, the wedding, our wedding is only a month away. But deep down I know there’s a chance that’s not what it is. I go back out to Kim, and Hailey, but I only see Kim.   
“Where’s Hailey?” I ask confused.   
“She went to get you a pregnancy test, she thinks she still has one from when she was pregnant with Kass.”   
“Kim I don’t think-“   
“Safe it Erin, we haven’t even been here for two hours, and you’ve gotten up to run to bathroom to throw up, countless times. Unless you already know that you are?”   
“No I don’t know, but-“   
“No buts then, don’t you want to know if you have a baby Halstead growing inside of you.”   
“Of course I do Kim, I’m just scared.”   
“It’ll be ok Erin.” Hailey says walking back into our apartment, with a purple, blue and white box.   
“So you weren’t scared when you first realized you might be pregnant?”  
“Oh I was fucking terrified, but then I thought about it, and I realized while yes it’s scary, I also had, and still have Kevin. And you have Jay, Kim has Adam, and our men though we find ourselves wanting to strangle them on many occasions, they’re the best of the best, we’re lucky as hell to have such a support system, and partners like them. It’s scary Erin, but you’re not in it alone.” She says handing me the stick.   
“Thank You.” I say standing up, and walking to the bathroom. I don’t think those three minutes could have gone any slower than they did, but when the timer finally went off I was slow to look at the result. I took a few minutes to take in the information, before making my way back out the living room. Both Hailey, and Kim sprung to their feet when I walked out.   
“So?” Kim says anxiously   
I answer with tears trailing down my cheeks “I’m…I’m pregnant”   
Kim squeals in excitement, I think, and Hailey calmly walks over to me, with a big smile on her face, and just gives me a hug.   
“Oh my god, you’re having a baby. I’m going to be an auntie again. This is so exciting, I can’t believe you’re pregnant.” Kim says as she walks over to me to give me a hug too.  
“I can’t believe it either.” I say honestly  
“So how are you going to tell Jay?” Kim blurts out   
“Jeez Kim she just found out, I’m sure she hasn’t thought about that yet.” Hailey tells her  
“Actually I think I already have an idea, but can you guys not tell anyone please?” I ask  
“Yeah, we promise not to say anything.” Hailey agrees immediately, nudging Kim’s shoulder, we she doesn’t say anything.   
“Oh uh yeah sure.” Kim says   
“Kim seriously, I want to do something nice for him, I don’t want him finding out from someone else. Please, you can’t tell anyone.”   
“Ok ok I promise I won’t tell anyone.” She says   
XXXXXX  
One week before the wedding  
Erin’s POV   
I ask Antonio if I leave early so I can head to the hospital and then finish up a few things up at home. He gives me the go ahead so I grab my jacket; telling Jay that I’ll see him at home; giving a quick peck, and ignoring the concerned look that he gives me, and walking out of the bullpen. I go straight to the hospital, and run into Will right away. ‘Just who I was looking for.’ I think to myself. He gives me a nod, before side stepping and beginning to walk away.   
“Wait Will.” I say to him, getting him to stop, and turn around   
“Look Erin.”   
“Just let me get this out please.” I say, and he just looks at me before nodding  
“I know that I’m not your favorite person-“ I begin   
“Erin I-“ He starts but I just continue   
“I get it Will, I know you hate me. I hurt him, and disappointed a lot of people, but I came back. I came back, and while I never expected for us to be anything to each other again, here we are. And I know that you don’t approve of me, of us. I get that you want better for your brother but for whatever reason he chose me, and I choose him. I love your brother, and I know you do too. I know that you two haven’t been the closest since I came back, but I don’t want him to regret not having you at our wedding, or being the best uncle to our children. Now I got Natalie’s RSVP, but not yours, I’ll still leave a spot for you next to Nat, in case you change your mind. He may not show it but I know it would mean a lot for you to be there for him. We can just be those in laws that don’t get along, but I hope for him, and for them that you’ll be present.”   
“Are you done?” He asks, and I nod “I never hated you Erin, but yeah it was disappointing as hell when you just up and left. So I tried my best to push you two apart, so history didn’t repeat itself. And for that I’m sorry, it was wrong, and not my place and I’m sorry that it took you coming here for me to say that to you. You completely broke him Erin, but I can see now that you were the only one who could truly put him back together, and you’ve given everyone a glimpse at the person I saw before. I see you as a sister again, because of how happy you make him. I appreciate that you came here today, and I will definitely be there on your day.” He says before stepping forward, and giving me a hug.   
“Children?” He asks as he backs away   
“Yeah.” I say rubbing my belly, and he looks down, and then back up, a completely shocked expression taking over his features.   
“Are you serious?” He asks excitedly, and I just nod.   
“That’s amazing, congratulations.” He says giving me another hug.   
“Does he know?” He asks backing away again, with a signature Halstead grin on his face   
“Not yet, I’m planning on telling him tonight, which speaking of I need to see your girlfriend in about 5 minutes, but I really hope to see you next week Will.”   
“Yeah I should probably go check on my patients, but I’ll be there. Thank You Erin.” He says, and I just nod before we go our separate ways. I go to see Natalie to get my ultrasound done, and get the sonogram pictures printed for Jay, and I. As I’m leaving the hospital I text Antonio.  
XXXXXX   
Jay’s POV   
I get that Erin is under a lot of stress but these last few weeks something’s been really off. She had some kind of bug a couple weeks back, and she’s just been acting different. Everytime I try to ask what’s going on she just brushes it off, and says it’s nothing, and most of the days she can convince me. But today, I know something’s up. She leaves work a few hours early, not telling me where she’s going, just that she’ll see me at home, before giving me a quick peck, and leaving. Once Antonio tells us to go home, I go into his office; closing the door behind me.   
“Hey did Erin tell you where she was going today? She’s been acting really off lately.” I ask him   
“Look I’m sure she’s just stressed about the wedding man, most women get like that, especially a week before.”   
“Yeah, I just feel like there’s something else going on.”  
“She just told me she had some things to take care of, but she did text me about an hour after she left.” He said pulling out his phone, to look at the message.   
“She said just leaving the hospital, had to talk to Will and Natalie, do you need me to come back in?” He reads off   
“Alright thanks man.” I say before exiting his office, grabbing my coat off the back of my chair, leaving the bullpen, and heading home; hoping she’s there.  
XXXXXX  
Erin’s POV   
After Antonio text me back that I didn’t have to go back in, I came home to finish putting Jay’s gift together, and then I went on to clean up around the house. When I started feeling nauseous I laid down on the couch, and waited for Jay to get home. After about an hour of watching, I hear the key in the lock, and then the door opens. He storms inside, and throwing his jacket on the hook, kicking his boots off, and walking towards me.   
“Is everything ok babe?” I ask, sitting up.   
“What’s been going on with you?” He practically yells   
“What do you mean?”   
“Don’t play dumb Erin, you’ve been acting off for the last three weeks, and everyone keeps telling me that it’s just the stress of the wedding, but I don’t believe it. And now today, you leave work early, and I find out from Antonio, that you went to see Will and Natalie at the hospital, but there was never a word of that mentioned to me?”   
“I went to the hospital to talk to Will about coming to the wedding.”   
“That’s so not the point of me bringing it up Er, but now that you say that. Why would you go behind my back to invite my brother who I haven’t talk to in over a year to our wedding.”   
“I did it because I didn’t want either of you regretting him not being there. He’s the only blood family you have left Jay, and I thought you’d want him there.”   
“That’s my decision if I wanted him there or not. Why would you of all people want him there?”   
“I literally just told you Jay, but you’re being irrational, so I guess it just didn’t register.”   
“Sure, I’m the one being irrational. You’re the one that has been hiding something from me, your fiancé, and soon to be husband for weeks-“ He says but I cut him off there.  
“You’re right I have been hiding something from you. I was hiding it to surprise you.” I say picking up the wrapped box off the table, and slamming it against his chest, as tears start to cascade down my face. I turn around, and sit back down on the couch as far away from him as possible.   
XXXXXX   
Jay’s POV   
Coming home I didn’t intend to start a fight, but here we are, and now she just slammed against a gift to my chest, and she’s crying. I put the box decorated in blue paper, and white ribbon back on the coffee table, and walk over to where she’s sitting on the couch. I kneel down in front of her, and rub my hands up and down her thighs. She won’t look at me, so I cup her cheek, and


	19. Chapter 19

When she closes the door, she turns around, and lightly slams her hands on it, and then angrily wipes away her tears. She doesn't doubt him, but she does doubt his feelings for her. How, or more like why would he want to be with her? He could have anyone, so why would he choose her? She doubts herself, and whether or not she's really worthy of his love. She shouldn't have come back, she should've known the other shoe was bound to drop, and that it'd be dropped by her. Her thoughts run wild, and at some point she starts to pace, her legs seemingly moving on their own. Her tears stain her face as they continue to stream down her cheeks. ‘What have I done?’ She asks herself when she eventually collapses onto the edge of the bed.   
XXXXXX   
He just stands frozen in the kitchen. His fingers turning white as he grips the counter behind him. His head is tilted down, and his eyes are clenched shut. It takes several minutes for his heart rate to slow back down. He wants to go and kick the door of the guest bedroom down; wants to pull her into him, but he tells himself ‘She needs space.’ It feels like hours since she went into the room, but it's only been minutes. Once again his phone ringing breaks him from his thoughts.   
“Hey mom.” He says sadly.  
“Hello dear. I was wondering if maybe you could come fix somethings at the diner for me again please?”   
“Of course, when do you want me to come by?”   
“Anytime in the next couple of days will be fine.”   
“I'll try to come by tomorrow after work.”   
“Thank you.”   
“No problem.” He says  
“Is everything alright sweetheart?”   
“Uh yeah.” He says as he walks to his room.   
“Jay Ryan Halstead, don't lie to me.” She says sternly.  
“What's wrong? Are you ok? Is Erin ok? Should I come over?” She adds, a little panicked  
“Physically we’re fine, you don't need to come over.”   
“Then what is it?”   
“It's nothing, we just had an argument.”  
“About?” She asks, and he sighs. There's a pregnant pause  
“I understand if you don't want to talk to me about it, but you should talk to someone honey. It'll help you see that arguments are normal in relationships. If you don't fight every once in a while, then you're not letting each other in on how you feel.” His mom says, and then he decides to tell her.  
“We went to the grocery store.” He says, looking down at his feet.  
“I assume there's more to it than that?”   
“Allie was there, and she said some things; did some things.”   
“I know you already know this but I never liked that bitch.” Ms. Belle says; surprising her son.   
“And now Erin said she needs space.”   
“Then space is what you give her, just don't let her stray too far out of your reach. Let both of your emotions simmer down a bit, before you attempt to fix things.” She says, and he nods, forgetting his mom can't see him. Then he hears someone in the background.   
“I'll let you go.” He says.   
“I can multitask.”   
“I know you can, but I'm good.”   
“Alright well I'm always here if you need to talk.”   
“Thanks mom.”   
“Ok, go have some dinner, and then try to get some sleep.” She says, and he chuckles sadly at that; knowing sleep won't come easy, if it comes at all without Erin laying in bed with him.  
“Ok.” He replies  
“Goodnight honey, love you.”   
“Love you too ma.” He says, and then they hang up. He looks down at his phone, and presses on the green and white messages icon; seeing the red bubble with a white one at the top of it. His brother's thread is at the top, and he clicks on it, and a picture loads at the bottom. He presses on it to enlarge the image, and smiles sadly at it. He didn’t even realize his brother had taken a picture, but he's got to say, though his photography skills are questionable at times, Will managed to snap a good quality picture. One Jay quickly realizes is one of his new favorites. He feels the urge to go to her again, but he stays put. Only getting up to go make a sandwich, and he eats it in the kitchen before going back to his room. He lays back down; folding his arms behind his head as he stares at the ceiling.   
It's been two days since they’ve really talked. She tosses and turns both nights, where he falls asleep easily on the second night. Yet it still doesn't feel long before his alarm goes off for him to get up, and ready for work. When he gets out of the bathroom, he looks at the empty bed, and then down the hall. He goes to the kitchen, and makes a pot of coffee; staring at the door as the coffee starts to drip into the pot. Once it's done he pours some of the hot, dark liquid into a mug, as he sets out to make breakfast for them. He sets a plate aside for her, and then eats his portion, before going to grab his keys, gun, and badge, only going back to write her a note and then he leaves.   
XXXXXX  
She eventually falls asleep, but it only feels like she had her eyes closed for mere minutes before she's being woken up by the sound of one of dogs scratching at the door. The smell of coffee seeps into the room, and her stomach grumbles. She crawls off the bed, and cautiously opens the door, and then tiptoes to the kitchen. She picks up the white notepad paper folded in half in front of the coffee pot, and plate of food.   
‘I know you're still mad at me, and I know this won't fix anything, but I'm sure you're hungry, so please eat. I'm going to try to come home during my lunch break. Call or text me if you need anything.’   
She smiles sadly as she puts the note back down, and pulls the plate towards her; picking up a piece of the now cold bacon, and takes a bite. Carly comes into the kitchen, and looks up at her with sad puppy dog eyes.   
“Hey Carls, are you hungry?” She asks, her voice a little raspier than usual, as she grabs their bowls, and makes both dogs their breakfast, placing Chance's bowl down in front of where he's been sitting, waiting patiently. Carly walks over to his bowl, when Erin turns around to get her bowl. She starts to scarf down his food, letting out a little growl when he attempts to eat some too, causing Erin to turn back around. Chance just sits back down, and looks at her as she continues to inhale the green sludge. Erin giggles at that as she goes to pour the extra amount she made for the extremely skinny Carly into the bowl she's now licking clean, and then waves for Chance to come eat what's left in the bowl in her hand. When they're done she lets them outside, and goes to check on the puppies. She picks up the gold and white boys individually, and looks them over before picking up the black and tan girl, and looking at her. She keeps her in her hand as she walks to let the adults back in. Carly looks up at Erin, tilting her head as if to say ‘why are you holding my baby?’ but then she walks over to the bed, and sniffs the rest of them and cleans them, and Erin soon puts the fifth puppy back down. She watches as the furry babies all scramble to get by their mother, before she walks back to the kitchen. She washes her hands, and eats her own breakfast.   
When she gets done, she does the dishes, and then decides to clean the house; sweeping, mopping, dusting, and vacuuming. It's a welcome distraction. Then she gets to his room, the smell of his shower gel, and cologne enveloping her as she begins vacuuming the rug under, and around the large dark wood bedframe, and then sweeping around the rest of the room. Once she's done cleaning she puts the supplies away, and then she goes to take a shower. When she gets out she goes to get a clean pair of underwear, and some clothes. Then she looks up at the closet, and stands up to grab one of his shirts. She dries her skin a little more, and then goes to hang the towel to dry in the bathroom; knowing one of Jay's pet peeves is when she throws a wet towel in the hamper. She looks at the unmade bed, before sitting on it, his scent once again wafting her nostrils, and then she lays down. Tears come to her eyes, and roll down her face as she lays there alone, but the smell of him, and the pillows she has around her, comfort her enough that she soon falls asleep.   
XXXXXX  
When he walks into his house, and places his keys on the table near the door.   
“Erin?” He says, as he continues towards the kitchen. His eyebrows furrow when he sees she's not in the guest bedroom, or the kitchen. He quietly makes his way to his room.   
“Er?” He says as he pushes the door open. She stirs slightly at his voice, and then her red, puffy eyes flutter open, and she sits up, as he sits down on the edge of the bed.  
“I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come in here.” She says, scooting towards the opposite side of the bed and getting up.  
“You don't have to apologize Erin.” He says, and she looks at him briefly. His usually blue green eyes, appear grey, and that along with the dark circles underneath his eyes makes her walk back towards him. Stopping just a few feet away.   
“Actually I should be apologizing, so I'm sorry.” She says looking down. “When I saw her with you that day, it just did something to me. I was jealous at first.” She admits, her cheeks turning red. She has never really been one to share how she feels, and she's embarrassed to admit that she was jealous to him. It's a first for her, but he is hers and he is worth being possessive over.   
“Then when she said that last thing, and you didn't say anything, I-“ She then adds sadly.   
“I'm sorry that I didn’t say anything to defend you, I'm sorry that I yelled at you, and for hurting you.” He says pointing at the bruise on her arm, and she looks down, somehow not even noticing the purple mark around her bicep until now. He stands up  
“I'm sorry that I didn't let her know.” He says taking a step towards her.   
“Let you know.” He corrects, with another step.   
“That I love you.” He finishes; taking the final step to her, and he places two fingers under her chin; tilting her face up, so she's looking up at him.   
“I'm sorry.” He whispers against her lips, before giving her what starts off as a gentle kiss, but quickly grows more passionate. Her hands inch up his chest, and stop at the side of his neck. He bunches up the shirt she's wearing, and then his hands rest at her waist just above her panties.   
“Don't you have to go back to work?” She asks as they pull their lips apart to catch their breath. He rests his forehead against hers, before giving her another peck.   
“Babe it's almost five.” He answers with a smirk.   
“What? I fell asleep at eleven, and you said you were coming home for lunch.” She says as he turns them so his back is to the door, and then he gently pushes her onto the bed. Then he rids himself of his shirt, and unbuttons his jeans.   
“I said I'd try, but I text you that I had paperwork to catch up on, and then I text you again when I got to practice.” He says, dropping down to hover over her, and then peppers kisses up her neck, and she presses her lips to the side of his head.   
“I didn't even hear my phone.” She says, attempting to reach her phone, but his hands on either side of her, prevent her from moving.   
“I guess you were really tired.” He says, each word broken up with a kiss to her lips.  
“Maybe, but I always hear my phone.” She mumbles against his lips.  
“We can look at it later.” He whispers; nipping just behind her ear, and then lifting his head to look her in the eye.   
“Ok.” She says, understanding that he doesn't want to talk. She moves to attach her lips to his again. His fingers loop in the side of her panties, and the rest of their clothes are lost in a hurry. The room goes silent for a few minutes, as he explored her body as if it was the first time. Then their stuttering breaths, and the headboard banging against the wall echoes around them as he sinks in and begins driving into her over and over.   
The whisper of her name against her neck has her tumbling over the edge, and his hips continue to thrust, even after he finds his release. He flops down on her chest, his member still inside of her as she traces mindless patterns on his sweaty back. It takes him a few minutes before he's able to collect himself enough to roll off of her.   
XXXXXX   
They're still laying in bed, her naked body pressed tightly to his, when his phone buzzes from his pants pocket. He doesn't care to move at first, but a couple minutes later, it buzzes two more times.  
“Do you want to go to the diner for dinner?” He asks as he moves to retrieve his phone.   
“I have to fix something for my mom anyways, you can get something to eat.”   
“Sounds good.” She says, as she sits up, and wraps one arm over his shoulder; laying her hand on his peck, and her other loops under his arm. She kisses the back of his neck.   
They both take their time getting dressed, but he still gets done before her, and he starts to leave the room. She looks at him as she finishes buttoning her flannel.  
“Hey by the way” She says; getting him to turn around.   
“I love you too.” She says. When he said it before she wasn’t sure she was ready to utter those words for the first time, but something felt right now. He slowly walks back to her, and leans down to kiss her once more before they leave.  
She drives them to the diner, and when they get there, she parks, and turns off the car before looking at her phone.   
“Are you coming?” He asks against her cheek, before kissing her there.   
“Yeah, I'll be right in.” She says, and he nods as he gets out, and walks in the diner.  
“Hey ma, what'd you need my help with?” He asks when he gets to the kitchen.   
“Jay, how are things with Erin?” She asks  
“Good, she should be coming in soon.”   
“So you talked through things?” She asks next  
“Yes.” He answers.  
“Good, well I just need you to change some light bulbs, and fix the stall in the bathroom.”   
“Ok, may I have two burgers, and fries please?”   
“Sure, do you want shakes too?” She asks, and Jay nods.  
“One chocolate, and-"  
“And one lactose free strawberry, I know.”   
“Thanks ma.” He says as he sets out to do the tasks.   
XXXXXX  
Erin goes in a few minutes later, and stands in front of the long pale yellow counter. Ms. Belle comes out after a few seconds.   
“Hey Ms. Belle.”   
“Hello sweetheart.”   
“Where's Jay?”   
“Oh umm he's in the back, grabbing some tools or something.” She answers, lifting a part of the counter, for Erin to come through.   
“Ms. Belle, Chrissy just called, and said she's going to be late cause she got a flat tire.” A young girl comes to say.   
“Is there anyway you can stay until she gets here Katie?”   
“Sorry Ms. Belle I would but I have to go pick up my brother up from his friend's house.”   
“No that's alright dear, I'll see you tomorrow. Have a nice night.” Ms. Belle says, and Katie nods and turns to walk out.   
“Do you need help?” Erin asks  
“Oh no I couldn't ask you to do anything."   
“Ms. Belle let me help.”   
“Follow me.” Ms. Belle says, and Erin does. They go to the office where Ms. Belle gives her an apron. Then they go back out to the front. Erin helps by waiting, and bussing tables. After a half hour Jay comes out after finishing his tasks, and sees his girlfriend with a notepad in one hand, and a tray in another as she charms the Anderson's.   
“Mom, why is Erin waiting?” He asks as he gets to the register.   
“She’s covering for Chrissy until she gets here.” His mom says not looking up at her son until she's done ringing the customers up. When she looks at him, he's smiling, and then she follows his gaze. Erin's smiling and laughing at something Mrs. Smith said to her.   
“I like her for you Jay.” She says, and he looks over at his mom, and gives her a soft smile.  
Erin works for about another half hour, before Ms. Belle walks over to her with another young girl who she assumes is Chrissy.   
“Thank you so much Erin, Chrissy can take over now.”   
“Thank you.” The young blonde say when Erin hands over the notepad, and apron.   
“No problem.” Erin says as she, and Ms. Belle walk over to the counter. Jay is sitting on one of the stools, and she sits next to him.   
“Hey you ready to go?” She asks.   
“Yeah.” He says attaching his lips to hers.   
“Mm you taste like your shake.” She says against his lips, and he laughs.   
Then Ms. Belle brings them their food, having kept it under the heat lamp to keep it warm.  
“Thank you again Erin.” Ms. Belle says, trying to hand her money.   
“It was no problem, I can't take that.”   
“Babe just take the money, otherwise she's just going to give to me at some point to give to you.” Jay whispers in her ear as he stands up with the bag of food in one hand, and the other comes to rest at the small of her back.   
“Thank you.” Erin says, allowing Ms. Belle to envelope her in a hug, and hand her the money. They finish saying goodbye, before leaving.   
They drive home, and after a few rounds of sex, she then falls asleep. He stays awake, just watching as her chest rises and falls with every even breathe she takes. He can't help but feel relieved for having her back in his arms where she belongs, where she's safe. Little does he know it won't be long before she's in danger again.


	20. Chapter 20

A week and a half later, she's sitting on the edge of the fireplace, holding one of the puppies, while she waits for Jay to get home so they can meet his friends out for dinner. She handles each of them briefly; taking in their grey colored eyes that are just starting to open a little, along with their ears. The little girl jumps when Erin's phone rings next to them.   
“Hey babe, where are you?” She asks  
“I have to drop Owen off at my mom's, so I'll just meet you there.” He answers  
“I don't know where I'm going so can you send me the address please?” She says putting the puppy down.  
“Yeah.”   
“Thanks.”   
“I'll see you in a little bit.” He says as he's about to hang up.   
“Wait Jay?”   
“Yeah?”   
“Can you call me when you get to the restaurant, so I'm not sitting by myself awkwardly.”   
“Er, Kim and Hailey are going to be there, and I'm pretty sure they like you more than me already, you don't need to be nervous.”  
“Ok.”   
“But if it makes you feel better, I'll call when I get there.” He adds, remembering how she admitted how nervous she was, and how her body tensed against his when he asked her to go.   
“Thanks.” She says a little more calmly, and he hears her car door close.   
“I'll text you the address.” He says, and then they say bye, and hang up. He texts her the restaurant's address a minute later, and she enters it into the GPS on her phone, and drives off.   
About twenty minutes later, she's sitting in her jeep in the parking lot of the restaurant, looking at her phone. He pulls up next to her, and gets out. He figured she would have seen his truck, but she's engrossed in her phone, so he goes to tap on her window, and sees her jump.   
“Sorry babe, I didn't mean to scare you.” He says, opening her door. She gets out of the car, and leans toward him to give him a kiss.   
“Are you ok?” She asks, feeling like something's off.  
“Yeah, just tired.” He says giving her a small smile, and a quick peck.   
“You ready?” He asks, and she nods. They walk in, hand in hand, and she sees him smile out of the corner of her eye as they get closer to the table with his friend.   
“Mouse?” He says cheerfully, and a thinly built brunette guy, with blue eyes, and dimple stands from the chair next to Kim.   
“When did you get back?” He says as he lets go of Erin hand to give his old friend a quick manly hug, before they back away.  
“Yesterday.” Mouse answers as Jay immediately grabs Erin's hand again, and she brings her other hand up to wrap around his arm.   
“Erin, this is Mouse, we served together. Mouse, this Erin, my girlfriend.” Jay says, and Erin extends her hand out to shake Mouse's, and he glances at Jay nervously before he cautiously moves to shake her hand.   
“Nice to meet you Mouse.” Erin says politely, and then Jay pulls out her chair, and pushes back in after she sits down. The waiter comes over to the table soon after they sit down.   
“May I have a white soda please?” Erin asks.   
“I'll have a beer.” Jay says after her, then the waiter looks at Mouse, and Adam who order beers as well.   
“May I have a Pepsi please?” Kevin asks, surprising everyone except for Kim and Hailey.   
“You driving tonight?” Adam asks, looking to his left at his best friend.   
“Nah, I uh just gave up drinking for a minute.” Kevin answers   
“Really why?” Adam asks confused, and Kim gives him a glare from her spot next to him. Kevin's not sure how to answer, he rubs his hand over the back of his head, and looks to his wife silently asking her permission, she nods after a few seconds  
“He gave it up because of me.” Hailey replies, confusing all of them except for Kim, and Kevin.   
“Since I can't have any alcohol for the next few months, Kev decided he's giving it up too.”   
“Next few months?” Adam questions, and then his facial expression switches from confused to excited as Kevin and Hailey both nod.   
“I'm three months along.” Hailey says, and Adam looks at Kim.   
“That's crazy cause so is Kim.” Adam says excitedly, and they all get up to give each other hugs, and saying congratulations.   
“I just have one question.” Jay says  
“Which is?” Kim says.   
“Do you guys expect us to believe that you just found out about the other being pregnant?” Jay asks, and the two other couples look at each other, confused.   
“Yeah, I mean Kim knew about me, and I knew about her, but we didn’t tell Kevin or Adam about each other.” Hailey answers.   
“So it wasn't planned for you to be pregnant at the same time?”   
“No, we didn't plan to get pregnant at the same time Jay.” Kim says narrowing her eyes at Jay.  
“Ok.” Jay says throwing his hands up slightly in mock surrender. The three couples plus Mouse continue to talk even after their food arrives.   
“So Erin how are adjusting to life up here so far?”   
“Honestly I never thought I'd be so happy living in Northern Wisconsin, but its great. Now I just need to find a job.”   
“I know you were telling us that you were looking to become a vet tech before you decided to become a teacher, and I actually have two jobs opening up. My receptionist is retiring, and one of the assistants is going on maternity leave, if you'd be interested in either of those positions.” Hailey says, Erin looks at Jay briefly, and he smiles and nods.   
“That's sounds amazing.” Erin says.   
“Great you can begin training next week if you want.” Hailey says, and Erin nods. ‘That was easy.’ She thinks to herself. They finish eating, and get boxes for what's left over. Erin, Kim, and Hailey talk amongst themselves, and the guys do the same. Kim, Hailey, and Kevin start to get up, and say goodbye. Erin nudges Jay, and he looks over at her with stoic look, having been in a serious conversation with Mouse, but his face softens when looking at her.   
“I'll see you at home.” She says quietly, and he nods, and leans in to give her a kiss.   
“Bye Adam, and it was nice meeting you Mouse.” Erin says, as she stands up.   
“You too.” Mouse says  
“Bye Erin.” Adam says, and she leaves the restaurant.   
The guys move over to the bar of the restaurant, switching from watching the baseball game on the TVs around the dark bar, and talking.  
XXXXXX   
Erin goes straight back the cabin, and unlocks the front door. When she sets her keys down, and immediately goes over to Carly, and the puppies. She pets Carly with one hand, and runs her other one over the backs of the babies, except for the girl who's laying on her back with her tongue out. Looking at that puppy, makes her think of Chance, who wasn't waiting at the door for her like usual. She stands up then, and goes to search for him. She goes to the kitchen, and the guest rooms first, and then to Jay's room, which she doesn't remember closing the door to before she left. She turns the knob, and calls her dog's name, before the brown wooden door swings open. A chill runs down her spine, and she gets goosebumps as she's not met with her dog, but instead ends up staring down the barrel of a gun. She looks up from the black gun, and up to the face of the person behind it. Her eyes hold no emotion, as she stares at Erin coldly. Erin hears Chance growling, and scratching at the bathroom door.   
“I thought Sean would have been able to scare you away, seeing him in the back yard, having him write I found you in Ms. Belle's barn, but he failed, and now I'm going to have to get rid of you myself.”   
“So you're going to shoot me?”   
“He'll think you just left like before, and I'll be here to comfort him.”   
“He'll figure it out Allie, especially since we're standing in his house.”   
“No, because I'm not going to kill you here.” She says nodding in the direction of the door, Erin gets the hint, and walks backwards stepping back into the hall.   
“Turn around.” Allie snaps, quickly walking towards her. Erin does as she says, and turns around. Allie presses the gun to the back of Erin's head as they walk further down the hall. Erin is walking slowly, when she decides to throw her head back. She hears a crack, and Allie stumbles back, and Erin goes for the gun, but Allie pulls the trigger; shooting Erin in the shoulder. Erin's hand immediately goes over the wound, as she looks over at it. She thinks ‘I'm not going down without a fight.’ As she lunges for the gun. There's a struggle, both women tugging at the gun, Erin throws her elbow into her, and the gun goes off again and shot echoes through the otherwise silent house.   
XXXXXX  
Jay looks down at his phone, and was about to call for Erin to come pick them up when his phone rings, and he swipes his thumb across the screen. He doesn't even have a chance to say anything before Antonio starts talking.   
“What's going on?” Adam asks after seeing Jay's face turn white. He takes the phone when Jay doesn't reply. After Antonio tells what's happened, Adam asks him to send a squad car, not trusting himself to get them there safely. He walks Jay to the outside of the restaurant, and within ten minutes a squad car pulls up, and all three men jump in. Once arriving at the cabin, Jay doesn’t even wait for the car to stop before he's running over to the first of two ambulances parked in front.   
XXXXXX


	21. Chapter 21

He gets to the back of ambulance just as the paramedic was closing the door, and he stops it. The paramedic opens it back up just enough to see that's its not her.   
“Sorry.” He says back away from the red, white, and blue vehicle. Then the second ambulance drives off.   
“Wait.” He says, chasing after it briefly. Then he goes back to the squad car that brought him there, and they head to the hospital. When he gets there he frantically searches for her in the ED and then  
“Jay.” He hears faintly, but he recognizes the voice, and it makes his heart both ache, and race as he turns to look for her. Then he sees her, sitting in the room he just frantically moved passed. He has to blink the tears threatening to fall from his eyes, as they lock on hers.   
“Thank god.” He says as he takes a couple strides over to her, and scoops her into his arms. He releases her just as quickly when she lets out a hiss. That's when he notices the bloody gaze on her shoulder.   
“They said it's just a through and through, but they still needed to bring me here.” She says, and he nods.   
“I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have been there for you." He says and she brings her hand up to cup his jaw, and gives him a small smile.   
“I'm fine.”   
“Yeah from what I heard you held your own.” He says against her lips, and then they kiss.   
“I didn't mean for the gun to go off, I was just trying to get it away from her.” She sadly.   
“Babe you did what had to do to save yourself.”   
“What if she doesn't make it?"  
“You'll still be just as amazing as you've always been, and I'm sure she'll be fine, if not we'll get through it together.” He says, and she nods.  
“How long do you have to stay?” He asks after a few minutes of just holding her.  
“They didn't say, but I don't think I'll have to stay for long. I just need to get stitched up, and get a sling.” She replies just before the doctor comes back in. Jay steps into the hall, not wanting to get in the way in the small room.  
“Jay, how's she doing?” He hears brother say after about twenty minutes of standing in the hall. He had sent him a text asking him to see what was going on with Allie, so he could tell Erin.  
“She's ok I guess, she's a little freaked out about accidentally shooting Allie. Did you get my text?”   
“Yeah, but I'm surprised you asking about her.”   
“I’m not that concerned about her, I’m asking more for Erin.” Jay says, and Will nods.   
“They should be finishing surgery to remove the bullet soon, her doctor is confident that she’ll make a full recovery, but I'll keep you posted.”   
“Thanks Will.” Jay says, and Will gives him a weak smile, and pats his shoulder; giving it a gentle squeeze, before walking away. Jay goes back into Erin's room; where they're telling her that she should be discharged soon. Then they turn to tell Jay how to tend to her wounds, as he goes to sit next her. He takes her hand in his as the doctor and nurse leave. At some point she falls asleep, and just sits next to watching her as she sleeps. Then his brother comes in, lightly tapping on the door.   
“I thought I come to check on her, and tell you that Allie just woke up.”   
“Good I'm glad.” Jay says unconvincingly.   
“I also came because there's something they found that you should know about.” Will says, and Jay nods towards the door as he stands up; only looking at Erin briefly and placing a kiss to her hand.   
“Actually I think you should stay sitting down.”   
“Oook, what is it?” Jay says as he sits back down. Erin wakes up at the sounds of their voices, but she seemingly doesn't have the ability to open her eyes.   
“Umm I don't really know how to tell you this-"   
“Will just spit it out.” Jay quietly snaps  
“She's pregnant.” Will says, and then Erin's eyes shoot open, and both Jay and Will look at her as she sits up.   
“I'm pregnant?” She asks, her voice raspier than usual, and Will shakes his head.   
“Allie is.” He answers, and looks back at his brother than. He doesn't miss the way Erin's otherwise straighten lips turn into a frown.   
“How uh…do you know how far along?” Jay asks after a brief pause, his voice comes off as anything but calm.   
“No not yet, they're about to do an ultrasound soon, but she's insisting on having you there.” Will says,   
“Why would I want to go?”   
“Take a guess.” Will says   
“Well I'm not going, I'll take some pictures if it's even mine, but I'm not wasting my time or leaving Erin for her, and a baby that's probably some random guys.” Erin gently squeezes Jay's hand, and brings it up to her lips, before placing it back down on the bed, and removing her hand from his.   
“Go, I'll be fine. You'll regret it if you're not there for the first ultrasound.” She says to him with a weak smile.   
“Will can you give us a minute please?”   
“Yeah, I'll be right across the hall when you're ready to go.” He replies as he exits the room. Jay nods at his brother, and gives him an appreciative look before looking at his girlfriend who's looking down at the blanket, and twirling it around a little.  
“Erin I'll understand if you're not ok with this.”   
“Why wouldn't I be ok with it?”   
“I don't know, you're girlfriend, and you're the one I love yet my ex, who just tried killing you is the one that might be having my baby. Shit I'm upset about it.”   
“It was before we got together Jay. I'm not going to lie and say it's not surprising, but it doesn't make me love you any less, nor do I feel the urge to leave.” She says looking down again.   
“Unless you want me to.” She adds quietly   
“I don't want you to, but we should talk more after I get back.” He says, and she nods.   
“I'll be here.” She says, and he leans down and gives her a comforting kiss, and then he leaves to find his brother.   
The two of them walk to the room that Allie is in. When they get there the ultrasound tech, and doctor are all ready, and they both, along with Allie look at Jay, and Will as they stand near the edge of the room. Allie smiles weakly, and extends her hand out towards Jay. He sees her out of the corner of his eye, but he doesn't acknowledge her. His jaw is clenched as he stares at the monitor waiting for them to start the ultrasound. Eventually a black and white image pops up; the tech adjusts the volume so they can listen for the heartbeat; there's nothing at first.  
“Is our baby ok?”   
“Just hang-“ The tech starts, but cuts herself off “There we are.” She adds, and then the heartbeat echoes through the room.   
“This is your baby right here.” The doctor says circling the little grey bubble with her finger.  
“Looks like you're about twenty weeks or five months.” The doctor says, and Jay just stands there in shock.  
“Is our baby ok?” Allie asks, and Jay just continues staring at the screen.   
“They're a little on the smaller side, but other than that everything looks perfect, would you like to know the gender?” The doctor says, and Allie nods as she looks at Jay, but he turns to walk to the door.   
“It looks like you're having a little boy.” The doctor adds, and Jay's just about to walk out when the heartbeat of her baby, his baby seemingly gets louder, and he stops briefly before exiting the room. He walks back to Erin's room, but then he debates on whether or not he should just leave. He looks in the window, and sees her anxiously chewing on her fingernails, and he decides to go in.   
XXXXXX   
She never thought she'd find a guy that she could see having kids with until the moment Will said the word pregnant. In the few seconds it took Will to answer her, she could already picture a little bundle that was the perfect combination of her and Jay. But then Will said Allie was, and that image vanished. Her heart ached when she told Jay he should go, and even more so when he left. She knows how amazing of a father Jay would be, and she wants to support him, but in that moment she selfishly wanted to be the one to start a family with him. She also felt even more guilty about the shooting Allie, now that she knows that she's pregnant. She would never wish any harm to the baby.   
He walks in, and her hand drops when she sees the look on his face.   
“I'm sorry.” He says, and she tries to brace for whatever he's going to say or do next, but she's still not prepared.   
“I'm sorry.” He repeats as he walks back out of the room. She yells his name as she gets out of the bed; pulling off the various cords attached to her body before she's able to run to the hall. She yells again once she's out, but she doesn’t see him. She stands there on the white and grey tiled floor, with a hospital gown, and a black sling on. Her feet feel heavy as she slowly turns in every direction to search for him, and tears begin to stream down her face as she realizes he's already gone.


	22. Chapter 22

Her hands tightly grasp at his shirt as attempts to get out of the bed, and her face scrunches a little as she nuzzles into his side more. She lets out a sigh before her even breathing continues letting him know she isn't awake. He moves again, but her fingers squeeze the blue cotton covering his torso.

"Stop moving." She mumbles into his chest.

"I have to go get Chance, but I'll be right back." He says; telling a little white lie. He is going to pick up Chance, and put Carly and the puppies in the guest bedroom but he's also going to pick Nadia up too.

"Why?" She asks; breaking him from his thoughts.

"Because he's not letting anyone in the house to clean."

"I'll come with you." She says, still keeping her eyes closed.

"No, you need to rest. I won't be gone that long."

"Fine." She says with a slight pout to her lips, and he chuckles a little at her response, and leans down to place a kiss to the corner of her mouth. Then he gets up, and looks at her as she snuggles into his spot. He smiles at her while he walks out of the room. He makes his way to the front of the house; trying to avoid all the spots where he knows the floor will creak. It was a long night for all of them, and he doesn't want to wake anyone, but he finds as he's putting his shoes on that his efforts are fruitless

"Where are you going?" He hears his mother ask from somewhere in front of him.

"I have to go pick Chance up from the cabin, and then her friend from the bus station."

"Oh. Did you tell her where you're going?"

"Yes." He says; rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well kind of." He adds

"Jay." She says sternly.

"Her friend and I agreed that we wanted it to be a surprise, besides she was already back to sleep before I even got out of the room."

"Alright, when will you be back?"

"Probably an hour."

"Ok, would you be able to cut the grass please?"

"Yes."

"Thanks honey." She says, and he nods, giving his mom a smile before he leaves.

He's only gone for about forty minutes before he gets back to his mother's house with both his girlfriend's dog, and her best friend.

"Mom this is Erin's friend Nadia. Nadia this is my mom Ms. Belle."

"Nice to meet you Ms. Belle."

"You too dear."

"Erin's in my room, this way." Jay says; turning to lead her to his childhood bedroom.

"Was she sleeping?"

"She was when I left." He says looking back at her.

"Then I'll just wait for her to come out, I don't want to wake her." Nadia says

"Well I'm going to go check on her, and then I'm going to mow the lawn. Make yourself at home Nadia." He says before doing just that. When he gets to his room she's still sleeping soundly. Quietly he grabs a baseball cap off of one of the hooks near the door, and he heads out. The late morning sun seemingly gets hotter by the minute as he walks to the large garage. He adjusts the black hat, before opening the garage. He starts up the green and yellow riding lawn mower, and drives it out onto the drive way; looking forward at the yard in front of and behind his mom's house. He moves the seat a little and then starts cutting the dark green blades.

XXXXXX

"So how long have you known Erin?" Ms. Belle asks after Nadia comes back from the bathroom.

"We grew up together actually, my mom and her mom were-" Nadia begins, but pauses; not sure how to finish the sentence.

"Acquaintances, but we were always there for each other."

"That's nice that you have each other." Ms. Belle says after a few moments, and Nadia nods, and smiles down at Chance as he nudges her hand when she stops petting him.

"She's like my sister." Nadia says, and its Ms. Belle turn to nod.

"Would you like me to make you something to eat?" Ms. Belle asks

"No, I couldn't ask you to do that."

"I see what you're saying about the sister thing, because that sounds exactly like Erin." Ms. Belle says with a chuckle, and Nadia laughs knowing Erin would definitely answer like she just did.

"I'm going to make some sandwiches for lunch, nothing too fancy, you just have to tell me if you're allergic or don't want something on your sandwich."

"Really Ms-" Nadia starts but is cut off by Erin.

"What are you doing here? Better yet how did you get here? Cause I really hope you didn't drive P.O.S car here." Erin says with a yawn as she rubs her eyes.

"Jay called me yesterday, and told me what happened, I said I was coming up here, but he insisted on getting me a plane or bus ticket, because you would kill him if I got lost driving up." Nadia says, and Erin smiles as she looks around for her boyfriend.

"He's cutting the grass." Ms. Belle says; nodding towards the window above the sink.

"So you won't let me make you a sandwich, but will you eat if I set everything out, and you can make your own?" Ms. Belle asks and Nadia nods

"Thank you." Nadia says

"What about you Erin?" Ms. Belle asks, but she doesn't hear her as she stares out the window.

"Erin?" Ms. Belle says, but Erin continues to look forward.

She doesn't think there'll ever be a time where her breath doesn't hitch at the sight of his body; especially now that she knows how his muscles feel against her. Her lips become dry as her eyes seem to zoom in, and slowly travel down his back. His arms flex, and his muscles pop as he turns the yellow steering wheel; she takes in the thin layer of sweat that is covering his chest, and abdomen. She tries to control her breathing as it becomes more erratic and her heart rate accelerates. Then she sees a hand waving in her face, and Nadia is whispering to her.

"I get your man is hot, and all, but it's kind of awkward when we're standing in his mom's kitchen, and she's talking to you, but you're too busy drooling over her son to answer."

"I'm sorry, what were-" Erin starts as she finishes washing her hands.

"You're too late she waved her hand at you, and left."

Then Nadia gives Erin a gentle hug.

"So you have to tell me what everything." Nadia says after they sit down, and dig into their sandwiches. Erin fills her in on what happened in between bites.

"That bitch." Nadia says once Erin's done, and Erin gives her a weak smile.

"Hey what's wrong?" Nadia asks when she's see the expression on her face.

"Nothing." Erin replies

"Ok you can just tell me when you feel up to it." She says, and Erin sighs.

"I almost killed someone Nadia." Erin says sadly

"She was trying to kill you first, you were defending yourself."

"I know that's suppose to make me feel better, but it doesn't."

"Then what about the fact that you didn't kill her, she and her baby are fine. What were suppose to do, let her kill you?"

"No… I don't know, I just feel bad." Erin says with a shrug

"Well you shouldn't feel bad for fighting for your life. You did the right thing, you've finally got the life, and the man of your dreams. Why would you want to give it up, just to protect his crazy ass ex?"

"She's right Erin, you did do the right thing." Jay says as he walks into the kitchen. He wipes his flushed face with his shirt before throwing it to lay on his shoulder. Nadia turns her head, and looks down at her plate when Jay leans down and kisses Erin.

"I'm going to take a shower, and then we should take Nadia around town."

"Ok." Erin says, and then he walks off.

They spend the weekend just hanging out with Nadia, and before they know it, it's Monday and they're dropping her back off at the bus station. Erin says bye first, and then once Nadia pulls out of their hug, she gives one to Jay.

"I'll be back in seven weeks for her birthday, you think you can handle her until then?" She says as seriously as possible, but then she gives him a smile, when his smile drops.

"I'm kidding Jay, I know you'll take care of her."

"Thank you for bringing me up here, and I'll see you both soon."

"Bye Nads."

"Bye love you guys."

"You too." Erin says as Nadia gets on the bus.

XXXXXX

Six weeks later

"Jay please?" Erin begs, as she holds the puppy up a little higher. They're eight weeks old now, and the four boys have already been claimed. Erin's favorite is the only one left, and Jay is insisting it's because everyone knows how attached Erin is to her. They've been going back and forth since the puppy she's named Chloe walked into their room, and over to Erin's side of the bed. He just continues to get ready for work as she pleads with him.

"Erin were not keeping her, two dogs is enough." He says as he pulls his shirt over his head.

"Come on babe, how can you say no to this face." She says lifting the tired puppy's head gently, and turning to face Jay.

"Easy." He says walking closer to Erin who's already dressed in the purple scrub top and pants. His hand replaces hers under the puppy's chin, and leans down so his face is only a couple inches away from her little black nose. The puppy wags her tail, and moves her head to lick Jay's face, and Erin laughs when he wipes his cheek.

"No." He says softly, then he stands up straight, and places a kiss to Erin's nose.

"And no to you." He whispers to her, and she sticks out her bottom lip.

"Fine." She says, standing from the bed, and walking away with the puppy. He smiles; thinking about happy she's going to be at her surprise party.

"Babe I told you that my mom is going to take her and Finn."

"I guess we can still see her whenever then."

"Exactly." He says as he walks up behind her.

"And she's going to be so spoiled. Both of them are." He whispers against neck, as he peppers kisses to her soft skin.

"Yeah." She says sadly.

"I have to get to work, or my uncle is going to kill me, but I'll see you tonight." He says, and she nods.

"I'm sorry babe." He adds.

"It's ok." She says unconvincingly. He turns her around then, and places a kiss to her pouty lips.

"I love you." He says as he walks to the door.

"I love you too." She says, and then he leaves.

XXXXXX

When he gets home that night, he throws his keys in the bowl on the table near the door like he always does, and takes his boots off, placing them neatly on the mat under the hooks behind the door. When he walks past the couch he sees his dog laying a few feet away from her bed.

"Hey Carls." He says, but she doesn't move, she doesn't wag her tail or lift her head, she just continues to stare at the now empty bed. He goes to pet her, and make sure she's ok, and after a couple minutes he leaves her be. He goes into the kitchen, and warms up the dinner she left of the stove for him. Once he's done, he goes to his room where Erin is laying cuddled up under the covers, and reading a book; with her glasses sitting low on her nose.

"Hey beautiful."

"Hey, how was work?" She asks

"It was slow, but I guess that's a good thing. How was work for you?"

"Good." She says, and he nods, and points his thumb over his shoulder.

"How long has Carly been sitting out there like that?"

"Since your mom picked up Finn, and Chloe, I tried bringing her in here to lay on the bed with Chance and I, but she just sat at the door whining."

"I wonder if that's normal."

"I asked Hailey, and she said that they all act differently, but some dogs do get sad when their babies leave."

"Mm." He hums, and goes to the bathroom, and starts the shower. He begins to strip himself of his clothes, and as he places his shirt in the hamper he feels her arms snake around his midsection, and she places her lips to his spine. He groans when she presses her naked form against his back. He turns around once his pants and boxers are off, and they stumble into the shower.

"I'm sorry about-" She starts, but she can't find the words to finish her apology when he enters her in one swift motion.

XXXXXX

After she falls asleep later that night, he texts Nadia, and his mom about the party; making sure that everything's perfect for his girl.


	23. Chapter 23

"Auntie Erin?" She hears before she even gets the phone up to her ear. She's a little confused as to why she's calling from Jay's phone, since he was still at the precinct not even twenty minutes ago but she tells herself she'll ask later when she hears her say Auntie Erin once more as she unlocks and opens the door with one hand, and holds the bags of groceries with the other.

"Hi Kenz." She replies with a huff as she sets the bags on the kitchen counter.

"Auntie Erin can I-"

"Mackenzie did you ask Uncle-" Natalie starts to ask, and Erin doesn't know that Jay's standing next to his niece shaking his head at his sister in law.

"Go ahead Kenz." She hears him say

"Can I come over to Uncle Jay's so you can paint my nails for the parade tomorrow?"

"Mackenzie how do you ask nicely?" Erin hears Natalie scold her in the background

"Please?"

"Of course Kenz."

"Uncle Jay she said of course." She says excitedly and then it's quiet for a second before Jay gets on the phone.

"Hey she's been insisting that you do her nails ever since I got here." He says in a tone that tells her something's wrong, he's trying to hide it, and it makes her want to ask him to come home, but she knows she'll just have to wait until he's done there.

"Oh ok, well make sure she brings nail polish."

"Her and Natalie already left to come by you."

"Ok."

"I'll be home in a couple hours."

"See you then."

"Alright bye."

"Bye."

XXXXXX

About fifteen minutes later Natalie drops Kenzie off at the cabin, and then she leaves to run some errands.

"Ok Kenz, what colors did you bring?"

"Red, white and blue." She states matter-of-factly, and Erin giggles at that.

"Right, silly question." Erin says, and Kenzie shrugs before Erin leans down and picks her up.

"Do you want to try something knew with your nails?" Erin asks when they get to the guest bathroom, and she nods. Then she sets up a blanket for them to sit on in the guestroom, and she has cotton balls, and nail polish remover near by just in case. She fills the plastic cup she brought in earlier with warm water, while Kenz pulls out the nail polish she has in her little backpack.

"Ok Kenz which nails do you want red and blue?"

"This nail red and this one blue." She says, pointing to certain fingers on one hand with her other one. Erin gently takes her hand and paints the little nail on her index and pinkie fingers white first, and then paints the rest either red or blue. Then while they're drying, she delicately drops red and blue polish into the cup creating a faint red and blue layer on the surface of the water. Once there's several ripples of paint she moves the paint around a little with a toothpick before she dips one of Kenzie's white nails in face down, and when she pulls it back out the nail appears to be tie dyed. She repeats this process until all of her white nails are red, white and blue. Kenzie stays surprisingly calm and still during the time it takes for Erin to get done, but once her nails are dry she bounces up and down with joy. Natalie knocks on the door, and then lets herself in a few minutes after they've finished, and Kenzie runs to show her mother her nails. Erin cleans up the room a little before she too goes out to the living room.

"Thank you Erin."

"No problem."

"What do you say Mackenzie?" Natalie asks looking down at her daughter.

"Thank you Auntie Erin."

"You're welcome Kenz." Erin says as she bends down, and hands her, her little pink backpack.

"You're coming tomorrow right?"

"Yes."

"Ok well see you then, and thanks again." Natalie says as she turns to leave, still holding Kenzie's hand causing her to turn too.

"Bye." Erin says

"Wait momma." Kenzie says pulling her hand from her mother's, and then she quickly walks to Erin and hugs her legs.

"Bye Auntie Erin."

"I'll see you tomorrow Kenz." Erin says, and then they leave.

She grabs the remote off the back of the couch and turns the TV on; changing the channel to a music channel, she then turns it up and goes the kitchen.

When she gets done cutting the fruit, she arranges it on the red, white, and blue platter she just bought. Then she wraps it in the plastic cling wrap before placing it in the fridge. Next she prepares the potato salad that Camille always made for when they had barbecues or cook outs in the summer, and she showed her how to make it not too long ago. She boils the potatoes before she peels them. When she gets to the last few she feels Jay wrap his arms around her. He doesn't say anything at all, so she turns her head, and looks over her shoulder at him. His face is serious, even after she presses a kiss to his cheek. She finishes peeling the potato in her hand before she sets it in the bowl, and the knife on the counter as she turns.

"You want to talk about what's been bothering you these last couple days?"

"I'm fine."

"No you're not." She says and he sighs.

"What's wrong babe?"

"Fourth of July just isn't my thing."

"Do you want to just stay home?"

"No, this is the first party Will and Nat are hosting and they're looking forward to having everyone over tomorrow." He says, and then leans down to give her a kiss.

"What are you making?" He whispers in her ear; replacing his chin on her shoulder after she turns back around.

"Potato salad."

"Is it for dinner?"

"No it's for tomorrow, I actually forgot to get something for dinner." She says with a sigh

"I can go run to the grocery store, or the diner?"

"We can just order something." She answers as she begins cutting the potatoes, the knife slices through the potato with ease, and she nicks her finger, letting out a hiss as she drops the knife, and throws the rest of the bloody potato into the garbage can. Jay guides her over to the sink, and turns the water on; looking at the cut briefly before she's pulls away to put it under the faucet.

"Let me see it." He says after a few seconds and she puts her hand in his.

"It's not deep, I'll go get a band aid." He says, leaving the kitchen. When he comes back she's ordering Chinese, and he takes her hand; removing the bloody paper towel, and wrapping the bandage around her finger. Then he lets her hand go, placing the knife she was using in the sink, and grabbing a new one to finish cutting the potatoes.

"I can finish Jay."

"You can get the rest of the ingredients ready, I don't want you hurting yourself again."

"Jay." She says, and he looks at her briefly before continuing to cut, then he hisses, and she is back by his side in an instant.

"See now you know how I felt." He says with a smirk; throwing the rest of the potato in the bowl, before showing his hands to her, and he laughs when she narrows her eyes at him.

"Not funny Jay."

"Oh come on babe." He says with another chuckle; throwing the last bits of potato in the bowl. Then she adds the other ingredients and mixes it together before covering the bowl and putting it in the fridge.

Their food gets there and they eat before going to bed.

XXXXXX

The parade is going well, both Erin and Jay appear to be having a good time, and they smile and wave at Kenzie when she passes them on her decorated bike, with Beau their puppy laying in a wagon attached to the bike, and Natalie standing close by with the leash in her hand. Not long after the military drill team walks past before coming to a halt a few feet in front of them. Jay freezes, and his body tenses when their drill rifles fire off blanks. Erin grabs his hand, but he doesn't seem to notice. It's over quickly, and as soon as the soldiers are marching forward Jay moves through a row of people to walk to the car.

"We'll see you in a couple hours." Erin says to Ms. Belle; not waiting for a reply before she goes to follow Jay.

"Jay wait up." She says when she gets close to him, but he doesn't stop. He gets to the truck, and starts it before she gets in.

"Jay-"

"I don't want to talk about it Erin." He says sternly.

"Ok." She says. The drive home is eerily quiet, and when they get back to the cabin he goes straight to the bedroom. Erin gives him space, until she's ready to leave for the party. She knocks on the door, before trying to open it, but it's locked.

"The party is going to be starting soon, so I'm going to head out, I can come back to pick you up if you-" She says, but then he opens the door.

"I'll meet you there, Will just asked me to pick up ice." He says, his voice sounding similar to the way it was on the phone yesterday. She brings her hand up to his cheek, and caresses it gently, and he leans down to kiss her forehead.

"I'm alright."

"You remember when you said to me, it's understandable if you're not fine. And it's ok if you need to fall apart, or break down, because I'll be right here to help you build yourself back up, so don't suppress your feelings. Well that statement goes for you too." She says, and he nods his head; giving her forehead another kiss, before they both leave.

XXXXXX

Erin, Natalie, and Ms. Belle are putting out the last of the food, when Kenzie runs from the back of the house to the front with Beau chasing after her

"Uncle Jay." She yells excitedly.

"Hey Kenz."

"Uncle Jay, I got 1st place for my bike."

"You did?" Jay says as excitedly as he can muster.

"Yup, I got a ribbon, and a card for Mickey's."

"What is Mickey's?" Erin asks quietly.

"It's a frozen custard, and burger stand." Natalie says

"It's the only custard stand around here that has lactose free options. I'm surprised Jay hasn't taken you there yet, he loves the grasshopper custard." Ms. Belle adds, just as Jay walks into the kitchen. When the food is all out, they all go outside. Kenzie gets her uncle and dad to set up the slip and slide, and then convinces them to slide down it first, but Will gets pulled away to start the grill. Jay kicks shoes off, removes his phone and keys from his pockets, and takes off his shirt and then hands them to Erin.

"You should put sun screen on."

"Only if you put it on for me." He says in her ear, and she shivers even with the sun beating down on them. She grabs the yellow bottle off the table, and squirts some of the white lotion on his skin, until she's sure he won't get sun burnt. He gives her a kiss, before putting his cap back on. Kenzie comes back out in a patriotic swimsuit. Natalie sits down in a chair, and Erin hands her the sunscreen so she can put it on both Owen and Kenzie. Once they're done, they go to play on the slip and slide. Jay goes first, and goes again a couple more times after Kenzie and Owen but then he goes to sit at the table.

Erin had just gone inside to get some food, and when she comes back out Jay is sitting in her chair. She sets her plate down in front of him, and goes to grab another chair, but he grabs a hold of her waist, and pulls her into his lap. She looks at him briefly before she picks her plate up, and grabs a piece of watermelon. He sits up a little, and looks at her plate before picking a piece of honeydew up off it. Then Mouse walks in, with a brown eyed brunette on his arm. Jay nearly chokes on the piece of the melon. Mouse quietly introduces her to everyone before he gets to Erin and Jay. Jay sits up again, and pulls Erin back a little more in his lap.

"Abby you know Jay, and this is Jay's girlfriend Erin, Erin this is my girlfriend Abby."

"Nice to meet you Abby." Erin says politely, and Abby nods, but can't seem to take her eyes off Jay.

"Abby." Jay says with a nod.

"Jay how have you been?"

"Great. You?"

"Good."

"Good." Jay says. The exchange is awkward, and Erin doesn't miss the obvious tension. Jay has her stand so he can get up, and then she sits back down.

"Mouse can I talk to you for a minute?" Jay asks, and then they disappear around the side of the house.

"Girlfriend?" Jay says

"I told you I was seeing someone."

"You failed to mention that, that someone was Abby."

"We were stationed on the same base, and kind of picked up where we left off. She was there for me, just like she was there for us back in Vegas. Why is that an issue for you?"

"It's not."

"You could have fooled me. I thought you two were just friends back then."

"We were. I'm sorry, I was just a little thrown off." Jay says, and he hears Abby's laugh, and it makes him think back to his last night in Vegas a few years ago, he doesn't remember what she was laughing about then, but he remembers how the conversation following it had him sobering up, and buying a plane ticket back home that night.

XXXXXX

*Flashback*

He takes a swig of his beer, with a smile on his face, when her laughter dies out.

"Let's get married." She says seriously, and he chuckles at that, thinking she was joking, but then he looks at her and he sees the serious expression on her face. He puts his beer bottle down, and combs his fingers through his hair.

"Abby."

"I know you think I'm crazy, but I can't be the only one who feels it."

"What?"

"I'm in love with you Jay."

"I'm sorry Abby, I care about you, and I understand what you've been through but I don't feel that way, I uh I have to go." He says before he leaves.

XXXXXX

"Jay is there something you're not telling me?"

"No, no, sorry man, I'm happy for you." Jay says, and Mouse looks at him confused, but then he shrugs and walks off.

When night falls and Will announces that he'll be setting the fireworks off soon, Jay quickly says his goodbyes to everyone, before pulling Erin inside.

"I just have to say goodnight to your mom."

"You can stay, enjoy the fireworks."

"While you do what?"

"I'll be fine, just stay, have fun."

"No I'll be right behind you."

"Erin I don't need you to hold my hand. I've gotten through this before without you and I can get through it again." He says before turning to leave.

"Jay." Ms. Belle says after walking in and hearing his last sentence.

"It's ok Ms. Belle, I don't want to push him anymore than I have."

"Oh sweetheart, I should have warned you that the fourth is hard for him, and then adding Abby to the mix, he just needs some time. Will's going to set off the fireworks now, why don't you join us?"

"Thanks Ms. Belle, but I won't be to enjoy them while he's at home."

"Ok dear, I'll talk to you later, call if you need anything."

"Ok goodnight." Erin says before she leaves. She gets home quickly, and she takes a deep breath before getting out. She can hear music blaring as she gets to the front steps. Her heart begins to race; not sure what kind of state he'll be in when she gets inside. When she walks through the door she sees the TV is on, but Jay isn't in the living room, and then she finds that he's not in the kitchen either, so she walks to his room, and into the bathroom. He's staring blankly at the tiled wall of the shower; tears streaming down his face, with his back against the vanity. She doesn't say anything as she walks over, and sits next to him. She places her hand on his thigh, and he looks over at her then. His eyes are blood shot, and she gives him a weak smile, as he slowly leans in to rest his head on her shoulder, and her other hand comes up to cup his cheek. They sit there quietly for a while, before he whispers

"My second tour, we were celebrating the fourth even though we weren't on US soil. Nothing like the festivities here, but it was still something different for us to do. We were still on high alert, or so we thought, then this Humvee drove right through the gates, and seconds later bombs after bombs were going off. We lost a lot of our own that day, and since then this holiday has never been the same for some of us. The parade I can tolerate, but the fireworks do something to me. I don't know how to explain it, but it's different than when I'm on the job." He says, and she runs her hand through his hair, and presses a lingering kiss to the crown of his head.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize Jay. What you went through, and what you carry is real, and if you ever need my help carrying it you just have to ask. Whatever it is I can handle it." She says, and he nods; putting his head back down on her shoulder. They sit in the bathroom until she feels its late enough for everyone to be done setting off their fireworks, then she stands up, and takes his hand leading him to the bed. She goes to turn the TV in the living room off, and then she goes to lay down with him. They both get broken up sleep, she wakes up with every whimper he emits, and he wakes a few times from the nightmares, before deciding to just stay up. When she wakes up he's already gone to work, and she gets ready for work herself.

XXXXXX


	24. Chapter 24

On her lunch break she goes to Mickey's, and gets two burgers, some fries, and a half pint of the grasshopper custard. Then she goes to the precinct, hoping that Jay's not busy. When she gets there Adam is talking to the desk sergeant, and he offers to walk her up to the bullpen.  
When they get to the top of the stairs Jay's sitting at his desk, doing what she assumes is paperwork, she smiles at the concentration on his face.  
“I thought she was bringing me some lunch, but she said it's just for you.” Adam says, getting Jay’s attention, and he smiles at her. It's the first real smile she's seen from him in days, and she hopes to keep him smiling. They go to the break room, and he leans in to give her a kiss after he closes the door.   
“You didn't have to bring me lunch.”   
“I know, but I wanted to. How are you feeling?”   
“Better now.” He says with another smile; giving her another kiss, and she hums into his lips.   
“Have you guys gotten any new cases?”   
“No, why?”   
“I was just wondering if maybe you'd want to go do something tonight, before Nadia gets here tomorrow?” She says quietly, her cheeks turning red, as Adam walks in, to get his lunch out of the fridge.   
“Aww you're blushing, that's so cute.”   
“Adam.” Jay says sternly looking at his friend.   
“Alright I'm out.” He says walking towards the door. “Just remember if you were planning to do something dirty in here these are pretty thin wa-" He adds  
“Adam get the hell out.” Jay says, and Adam closes the door behind him.   
“I actually already have something planned for you.” Jay says once Adam leaves.  
“Like?”   
“You'll just have to wait, and see.” He says after he finishes chewing his burger. They don't get to finish lunch together because Erin gets called back to work, but they both get home at the same time. They greet each other with a passionate kiss, and then Erin pulls away, but she keeps her body pressed up against his.   
“How much time do I have to get ready?”   
“Half hour?” Jay replies with a peck to her lips.   
“A half hour?” She asks raising her eyebrow at him, and he nods with a smile on his face  
“What are we doing?”   
“Go get ready.” He says turning her around.   
“What am I supposed to wear?”   
“Whatever you want.” He says at first, but then as she's about to step into his room he says  
“Whatever I want? So I can wear pajamas?” She asks turning back around.   
“No not pajamas, maybe jeans and a t shirt, or a sundress.”   
“Are you sure?”   
“Yes.” He says, and then she smiles at him, goes into the room. When he goes in about fifteen minutes later, she's in the bathroom, she puts a lipstick, but it's subtle, and she moves her upper and lower against each other, before making a light pop sound. She lets her hair down, and ruffles it a little before spraying her perfume in the space just to the side of her and walking through the mist. She turns, picking up a thin light pink material, and putting it on over her white tank top. He doesn't know that he's ever seen anything like it before, it's like shawl and a top, it's simple, but he likes it on her. He grabs a fresh shirt out of the drawer, and he walks over to the hamper, and takes off the shirt he wore to work, and replaces it with the new shirt. When he's done pulling the grey material over his head, she's switching off the light in the bathroom, and walking back in the bedroom.   
“Is this ok?” She asks unsure, as she looks down at her outfit, and he grins at her as he takes a couple steps to get to her. He cups her jaw, and tilts her head up, and he doesn't even need to say anything, because the way he's looking at her makes her feel like she's the most beautiful person in the world.  
“Perfect.” He says after a brief kiss. She grabs her tan leather sandals, and then they leave.   
At first it seems as if they're going into town, but then he turns onto the street that leads to the park. He parks his truck in the parking lot, and takes his seatbelt off, and the keys out of the ignition.   
“Can you just stay here for a second please?” He asks, and she nods her head.   
“I'll be right back.”   
“Ok.” She says as he gets out, and walks towards some trees, and disappears briefly before reappearing in another area. He comes to open the door for her, and takes her hand in his as she hops out of the truck. They walk hand in hand to a wrought iron gate that Erin never noticed any of the times she came to Owen's soccer games. Above the gate it says ‘Elise's Family Garden’  
“My Nana loved gardening, Tulips were her favorite.” He says; pointing at the bed of tulips.   
“My mom's are roses.” He says when they get to the next bed.   
“And Nat's are petunias. All the Halstead women have their own flower bed with their favorite flowers in here." He says as they get to the end, and he smiles at her, as she looks at Kenzie's pink impatiens, each kind of flower has a metal name plate, and then a list of care instructions in front of them since it's community garden. When she catches up to him, he takes her hand again, and walks her to the last bed, she takes in the concrete blocks surrounding the daisies, she can tell the blocks are new, because they appear to be an off white color, verses the tan color of the rest. Then her eyes move to the name plate, and it's her name. She looks at Jay, and smiles with tears in her eyes.   
“How'd you know?” She asks after she kisses him.   
“You told me.” He answers, as she looks at the flowers a little more; trying to remember when she told him that daises are her favorite but she doesn't have time to dwell on it before he's saying   
“Come on babe.” And he's squeezing her hand gently, and pulling her out the back entrance of the garden. There's two paths, both of which have been covered by twigs and branches. They go to the right, and Jay lifts his arm to move some branches out the way, and they continue along the path, and she looks down to make sure she doesn't trip on anything; noticing an extension cord. They take a few more steps before she sees a table set in the middle of a small field. The off white cloth, and the bouquet of daises move with the light breeze. The short green grass is surrounded by trees, except for one spot that overlooks the lake; the branches holding strings of white lights over them; casting a soft glow around them. The sun is just setting, and the water is calm as he pulls out her chair for her to sit down.   
“I wasn't sure what to have for dinner at first, but then you said how you could go for a good Chicago deep dish last week.” He says as he takes to silver top of the platter in the middle of the table.   
“You're amazing.” She says; looking down at the pizza, and looking all around them once more.  
“So you like it?”  
“I love it.” She says looking over at him, his eyes taking in their surroundings as well.   
“I love you.” She adds, and he looks at her then. He smiles at her, and she stands a little in order to lean towards and kiss him. They eat, and drink wine as the orange sun sets, and disappears behind the trees on the opposite side of the lake.  
“How did you manage to get fresh deep dish pizza in northern Wisconsin?”   
“I know a guy who moved here a few years ago, but his family owns a few pizza joints in Chicago.”  
“How long have you been planning this?” She asks as they walk through the garden.   
“A few weeks.”   
“It was perfect, thank you.” She says, stopping and pull him back to give him another kiss in front of her flowers. The soft, gentle kiss quickly turns into something more, and they end up stumbling back to the truck, and progressing their night against the black leather seats of his bronco.   
XXXXXXX   
After another couple rounds at home, he looks down, and sees that her eyes are closed, and if she's not already sleeping then she will be soon.   
“Happy Birthday babe.” He whispers against her forehead, then he places a kiss there; before he too falls asleep. He wakes up before her, and puts on a pair of boxers, sweatpants and a zip up hoodie then walks out to the kitchen, and leaves her note, telling her that he went to go clean up at the park; leaving out that he's also going to his mom's to set up some decorations, and do whatever she needs him to do.   
Cleaning up their table from the night before only takes about ten minutes, and then he heads to the farm. They don't over do it with the decorations, and he's done with that pretty quickly too.   
“Do I need to do anything else for the party mom?” He asks looking around.   
“No I think you got everything done and Natalie, and Kim are going to help me finish the food, and put it out.”   
“Ok.” He says picking Chloe up, and she turns to go leave.   
“Hey mom.”   
“Yes.”   
“Do you still have Nana's ring.”   
“Of course, why wouldn’t I?”   
“I don't know.”   
“I’ll be right back.” She says before walking towards her room.   
When comes back out, she's looking down at the small box in her hand; tears in eyes.   
“Mom I can buy a ring if you want to keep it.”   
“No, no it's not that sweetheart, she wanted you to have it.”   
“Then what's wrong?”   
“She would have loved Erin, and I just wish she was here to see you get engaged, and get married, and have kids.”  
“She is here with us mom, everywhere we go, and she sees everything we do. That's what you always said to us.” He says, and she nods and gives him a sad smile.   
“I can't believe my baby boy is planning on proposing.”   
“I'm not sure I'm going to do it now, but I want to have it for when the time is right.” He says looking at the ring, before pocketing it.  
“I'm happy for you Jay.”   
“Thanks ma, for everything.” He says, and she gives him a hug before he walks out to his truck. He puts the puppy on the passenger seat so he can pull his seat belt across his body, but she immediately crawls over the center console and onto his lap. Once she's comfortable, he finishes buckling his seatbelt, and starts the truck.   
He looks down at the fluffy puppy in his hand as he closes the door with his foot and then he almost steps on Carly when he turns around. She stands up on her hind legs; wagging her tail, and sniffing her puppy. He lets her investigate the furry bundle for a few minutes before he pats her head, and walks around her to go to the guest bedroom; pulling the yellow collar out of one of the drawers. He sets the puppy down on the bed, adjusting the collar, and messing with the bow before tying it to the collar, and putting it on her.   
“She’s going to be so excited to see you.” He whispers to the puppy as he picks her up from the bed, and heads to his room. They yawn at almost the same time, as he takes his hoodie off, and carefully gets back into bed with Erin. He tucks the puppy between a pillow, and his side, and Chloe nuzzles her wet nose into his armpit, and then she lays her head down on his bicep, as Erin cuddles into his other side, and he falls back to sleep.   
XXXXXX  
She doesn't open her eyes right away, instead basking in his warmth and listening to the sound of his heartbeat before she rubs her eyes, and looks up him. She smiles wide when she sees Chloe sleeping on the other side of him. Carefully, she moves to grab her phone, and takes a picture of her boyfriend and the puppy. She gets the photo just before Chloe moves, but she doesn’t wake up, and Erin gasps when she sees the bow attached to her collar. It's not just any bow, it's a bow with a small black velvet box in the middle of it. Her gasp causes Jay to wake up again, and he smiles as he looks at her. One of her hands is sitting in her lap, still clutching her phone, while the other is covering her mouth, and he sits up, and sets the puppy between them.   
“Happy birthday babe.” He says for the second time that morning, and she doesn't move or say anything, he decides to take the velvet box off the bow, and hold it up to her, and then her eyes look up to meet his.   
XXXXXX  
A/N: Let me know what you all think please? Also yah or nah to a proposal?...Thanks for reading, and I hope you're still enjoying it. Much Love.


	25. Chapter 25

A/N: Now, now peeps who said the box attached to the puppy's collar was the same box with Nana's ring in it?...Enjoy.

XXXXXX

She doesn't open her eyes right away, instead basking in his warmth and listening to the sound of his heartbeat before she rubs her eyes, and looks up him. She smiles wide when she sees Chloe sleeping on the other side of him. Carefully, she moves to grab her phone, and takes a picture of her boyfriend and the puppy. She gets the photo just before Chloe moves, but she doesn't wake up, and Erin gasps when she sees the bow attached to her collar. It's not just any bow, it's a bow with a small black velvet box in the middle of it. Her gasp causes Jay to wake up again, and he smiles as he looks at her. One of her hands is sitting in her lap, still clutching her phone, while the other is covering her mouth, and he sits up, and sets the puppy between them.

"Happy birthday babe." He says for the second time that morning, and she doesn't move or say anything, he decides to take the velvet box off the bow, and hold it up to her, and then her eyes look up to meet his.

XXXXXX

Her heart is hammering in her chest, as he slowly opens the box, revealing a pair of earrings, and she feels herself relax a little seeing that it's not a ring. She loves this man, but she's not sure how she would react or if she'd say yes, if he proposed to her right now. Blinking back her tears she gently takes the black box from his hand; looking the diamond triangles trimmed with gold. She saved them to a board on Pinterest, but again she's not sure how he knew about them.

"Nadia told me about them." He says as if he could read her mind.

"They're beautiful." She says leaning to give him a kiss, almost smooshing Chloe between them.

"Thank you, but you shouldn't have." She says against his lips, before giving him a peck.

"I know, but I wanted to, but I'm sure my mom will take Chloe back if you want." He says with a smile, and she playfully smacks his shoulder.

"No." Erin says as Chloe lets out a little bark in between them, and Erin picks her up, and gives her a gentle squeeze, and kiss on the head before she moves her over as she straddles Jay's hips. Chloe occupies herself by chewing on the drawstring on Jay's sweatpants; throwing it up in the air a couple times. Then it lands between Jay's legs, and the puppy crawls over one of his legs, and bites at the string, but she misses. Her sharp needle teeth go right through the sweatpants and boxers covering the lower half of Jay's body. His upper half shoots forward, causing his forehead to collide with Erin's.

"I'm sorry." He says when Erin's hand immediately goes to her forehead.

"What's wrong?"

"Chloe just bit me."

"Ok? You've had worse things happen to you, than a little puppy biting you."

"No babe, she bit me." He says, nodding down a little.

"Ooh." She says, shuffling to move off of him, but he grabs her hips, and keeps her in place.

"We should look at it Jay"

"No we shouldn't, it's not that bad."

"The bump on my head suggests otherwise."

"I'm not saying it didn't hurt and shock me at first, but it's fine."

"Jay."

"Come on, let's get you some breakfast." He says hoping the thought of food will distract her.

"Fine." She says, climbing off of him, and the bed; getting some clothes, and walking back to the bed to pick up Chloe.

"Way to kill the mood Chloe." She says scratching the puppy's neck as she walks to the bathroom with her.

He swings his legs over the side of the bed, and pushes his pants and boxers down. There are two red, bloody marks near his tip. He grabs a sheet of tissue paper from the box on the nightstand. He stops the bleeding quickly, and tucks himself back in. Before going into the bathroom to throw away the tissue, and wash his hands.

XXXXXX

When she gets done taking a shower, she gets dressed, and brushes her hair before picking Chloe up again, and leaving the bathroom, and then the bedroom. The smell of bacon wafts her nostrils, and Chloe puts her nose up; sniffing eagerly, and then wiggling a little. Erin holds her until they get to the back door, then she sets her down on the porch, while Chance and Carly walk outside. She smiles down at the little family as she walks back inside.

She walks up behind Jay, and wraps her arms around him as he flips a pancake.

"What time does Nadia get in?" He asks after she kisses his shoulder blades.

"She text me while I was in the shower she should be arriving in-" She says looking at her phone, and checking the message. "Ten minutes, so I guess I should leave now." She finishes.

"Do you want me to go?"

"No, finish making breakfast, and then relax, maybe put some ice on your-" She says looking down briefly "We'll be back soon." She adds giving him a quick peck, and grabbing her keys.

He finishes making breakfast soon after she leaves, and then lets the dogs back in, and goes to lay down on the couch. Chloe tries to climb up, but she can't, and she whines for him to pick her up. He hesitates at first, but then gives in, and lifts her up. She climbs onto his stomach, and then his chest. She lays down, and falls asleep with her front paws on each of his pecks, and he puts his hand on her back, kind of like he did when he'd watch Owen and Kenzie as babies. He turns the TV on, and falls asleep soon after.

XXXXXX

When Erin gets to the bus station, she parks her jeep, and waits. It's about twenty minutes before she sees a bus pull up and she gets out. Nadia is one of the first people off the bus, and she immediately sees her best friend leaning against her car. She walks over to her with a smile on her face.

"Happy Birthday." Nadia says.

"Thanks Nads." Erin replies, as Nadia gives her a hug.

"What are you so giddy about?" Nadia asks as they begin to drive back to the cabin.

"What are you talking about?"

"You haven't stop smiling in the last ten minutes since we've been together, you're actually glowing. Is this the pregnancy glow you always hear about?"

"I'm not glowing."

"Yes you are, am I going to be an aunt?"

"I'm not pregnant Nadia." Erin says as she turns the car off, and gets out.

"Are you sure?" Nadia says following her up the front steps.

"Yes." Erin replies as she unlocks the door. Her breath hitches when she sees Chloe passed out on Jay's chest, and she feels something inside her ache, but in a good way.

"But you want to be, right?" Nadia asks as she comes to stand next to her.

"I mean imagine that, but with your baby."

"Alright Nads, I'll show you around." Erin says, and she takes a few steps towards the guestroom, but she can't stop looking at Jay.

"You're so thinking about it."

"Nadia." Erin says loudly, much like an annoyed sibling. Her raised voice, wakes both Jay, and Chloe.

"Good morning Jay." Nadia says cheerfully, and waving at him.

"Hey Nadia." He says groggily.

"Breakfast is ready."

"Ok thank you, I was just going to show Nadia around."

"What's there to show me? This is a guestroom right?" Nadia asks, and both Jay and Erin nod.

"Ok great, let's eat." She says throwing her bag in the room, and walking to the kitchen. Erin shakes her head, and Jay chuckles at her, while looking down, and petting Chloe. He eventually gets up, and takes Chloe outside again.

"I have to go into work for a little bit, but maybe we can go out when I get back." Jay says when he's almost done eating, and Erin nods.

"Ok." Erin says; taking another bite.

They finish eating, and Erin takes the plates to the sink.

"How was your trip up Nadia?" Jay asks as he stands up; taking the rest of the dishes to Erin.

"It seemed to take forever, but it was good." Nadia replies as she too stands to get something to clean the table off with.

"Good." He says grabbing Erin's hips, and gently guiding her over a little, so he can get a cleaning spray for Nadia, and then he hands it to her to use with the rag she already has.

"Thanks." She says, and he nods, going back to Erin.

"I'm sorry." He whispers into her ear.

"For?"

"Having to leave for work."

"Don't be, it's just another day babe."

"No it's not, and I'll come back as soon as I can."

"Take your time, we'll probably just hang here."

"Actually I was wondering if maybe we could go shopping, if that's alright with you?" Nadia says handing Jay the spray bottle, and he moves Erin the same way he did before.

"Yeah that's fine." Erin says.

"Alright well I'll see you both later." He says; gently grabbing Erin's chin, and turning her head towards him to give her a kiss.

"Have fun, I love you." He says; giving her a quick peck.

"I love you too." She says leaving the kitchen, and then he leaves to go to his mom's.

When he gets there, he finds that everyone is already there, and everything's ready. He calls Erin right away, hoping they haven't left for the mall

"Hey babe, you miss me already?" She answers, with a little laugh

"Oh definitely." He says

"What's up?"

"Uhh my mom, has some stuff for Chloe that she wants to give you, but she was wondering if you could come get it, before you go to the mall, and she goes into town."

"Uhh yeah, we'll stop there now, we're right by her house."

"Ok thanks." He says, then they hang up.

"She'll be here within a few minutes." Jay announces; pocketing his phone.

Everyone is quiet as he walks towards the door, except for his mom, and Mrs. Voight who continue to talk to each other. Then Erin knocks, before cautiously opening the door, and then they turn their attention towards the front of the house.

"Surprise." Everyone yells in unison, and Nadia walks around Erin quickly to tape her reaction. When she gets over the initial shock, she moves about the room, thanking everyone individually. She starts with her friends Kelly Severide, and his wife Stella, and Matt Casey, and his wife Gabby. Then once she's talked to them, she goes to her pseudo family. Before she even gets a word out, Justin is pulling her into a hug.

"Happy Birthday sis." He says, as she moves to give Olive a hug, and then she picks up her two year old nephew.

"Thank you." She says after giving Camille, and Hank.

"I can't believe you're all here."

"I can't believe your guy actually called, and talked to Pops out of all of us." Justin says, as Jay joins them, and Erin wraps her arm around his waist, and Jay rests his hand on the small of her back.

"Justin this is Jay, Jay this is Justin my-" She starts, but Justin cuts her off.

"Her brother, nice to actually meet you man, this is my wife Olive, and this is our little Danny."

"Nice to meet you all." Jay says

"Mrs. Voight, sir, good to see you again." He adds with a nod of his head, as he looks at the people who raised his girlfriend.

"Jay, it's nice seeing you again too." Camille says sweetly, as Nadia comes up to them.

"Hi everyone, can I borrow her for minute? Great, thanks." Nadia says as she pulls Erin to the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" Erin asks before they actually get to the kitchen.

"Nothing."

"Then why did you pull me away like that?"

"I figured you'd want a break already, and I wanted to get some drinks."

"Nadia."

"What? You can go back in a little bit."

"Fine." She says as they get to the kitchen.

XXXXXX

"So what made you want to be a cop Jay?" Justin asks

"I always wanted to be a cop, so when I got back, the first thing I did was sign up at the academy."

"Got back from where?" Olive asks

"Afghanistan." Jay says quietly

"Erin told me you served." Justin says, and asks

"Justin just finished basic training, we're going to the Cubs game tomorrow." Olive says, and Jay nods

"Who are they playing?" Jay asks, willingly changing the subject.

"Milwaukee."

"Should be a good game." Jay says.

"Yeah, but we'll be flying the W when we get home tomorrow night."

"Are you driving down to Milwaukee tomorrow?"

"No we leave tonight." Justin says, and Jay nods; looking around for Erin, he thinks back to meeting the Hank and Camille Voight for the first time just a few weeks before.

XXXXXX

Flashback

"It'll be a quick visit babe, and they're going to love you." Erin says as they park in front of the house she spent her teens years in, and he just nods. He doesn't get nervous, but as they walk to the front porch, he starts to sweat, and his heart rate accelerates. This is the first 'meeting the parents' situation he's going through, and he's not quite sure what to expect. His anxiety melts away briefly when a dirty blonde women opens the door with a warm smile.

"I've missed you dear." Camille says when she envelopes Erin in a hug. Then she steps back, and looks at her pseudo daughter.

"Camille this is Jay, Jay this is Camille." Erin says turning the attention to him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you ma'am."

"Please call me Camille, Jay, and it's nice to finally meet you." She says as she gives him a hug too. Then they step into the house, and he remembers Erin telling him not to let Hank intimidate him, but he adverts his eyes when he's met the scowl of the older man. The greeting between father, and daughter is touching, and Hank even smiles a little.

"Hank this is Jay."

"Nice to meet you sir." Jay says, and it seems as if Hank isn't going to reply, but then Camille stands beside him, and tries to nonchalantly squeeze his arm, but all he does is nods.

XXXXXX

Thinking back he realizes that he didn't say more than a few words to him while they were there, mostly about his time on the job, and yet somehow he's more nervous now than he was then, but he musters up the courage to address him.

"Mr. Voight, Camille do you think I can talk to you for a minute please?" He asks, and Hank nods once again.

XXXXXX

A/N: Please don't be mad, the proposal you all we're excited for is still in the works, there's just a few things they need to work through first. Thanks for reading, Much Love.


	26. Chapter 26

Thinking back he realizes that he didn't say more than a few words to him while they were there, mostly about his time on the job, and yet somehow he's more nervous now than he was then, but he musters up the courage to address him.

"Mr. Voight, Camille do you think I can talk to you for a minute please?" He asks, and Hank nods once again.

XXXXXX

They follow behind him as he walks to the back porch. He opens the door allowing them to walk outside first, as he looks around to make sure Nadia still has Erin distracted, and then he closes the door. He takes a few deep breaths, as he turns to face his girlfriend's parents.

"I know this is only our second time meeting, but I want you to know how much I love Erin." He starts, the cold stare of making him even more nervous. "I'm not planning on asking her just yet, one of the reason being-"

"Just spit out kid!" Hank says sternly, and Camille elbows him in his side.

"Hank!" She says

"What? He's rambling, and we all know Erin's going to come looking for us soon, so just cut to the chase."

"I uh, I want to ask Erin to marry me, but I want to get your permission first. May I have your blessing to marry your daughter."

"Of course dear." Camille says excitedly, looking at her husband expectedly with a smile on her face.

"Camille can you make sure Erin doesn't come out." Hank asks, and she nods before back inside.

"You have my permission son, but know if you ever do anything to hurt her, or if there's ever an instance where you don't have her back, I promise they won't find your body." Hank says coming a little closer to Jay, and then extending his hand out, and Jay looks down, and shakes his hand as he says

"I'll never do anything to hurt her sir."

Then they go back inside, just as Erin, Nadia, Kim, and Hailey come out of the kitchen.

XXXXXX

The party goes by quickly, and before they know it they're saying goodbye to Erin's friends, and then her pseudo family. The only people left at Ms. Belle's other than Erin, Jay, James, and Ms. Belle are Nadia, Kim, Adam, Hailey, and Kevin.

"Well I think we should move the celebration over to Lottie's." Adam says as they finish cleaning up, and Erin looks at Nadia, and Jay.

"Don't look at me, it's up to you babe."

"Ok, yeah we'll come."

"Cool, we'll see you there then." Adam says, as the four of them leave.

"Thank you for hosting this Ms. Belle."

"It was no problem dear, Happy Birthday."

"Thanks."

"Now go have fun at Lottie's." Ms. Belle says

"Alright thanks ma." Jay says as she gives him a hug.

"It was nice seeing you again Nadia."

"You too Ms. Belle." Nadia says as she gives her a hug too.

XXXXXX

When the three of them get to Lottie's they walk to the back where the Atwater's, and Ruzek's are sitting along with Mouse, and Abby. Erin introduces Nadia to Mouse and Abby while Jay goes to get drinks. Abby smiles, and says

"Nice to meet you." Before she finishes her beer, and walks to the bar. Nadia immediately joins the conversation. Erin watches as Abby stands next to Jay. His body is tense again like it was when Mouse brought her to his mom's house on the fourth. She says something to him, and he nods, but doesn't look at her. Then she runs her finger down Jay's arm, and Erin feels her blood begin to boil, and even more so when she clutches his forearm. Then his attention turns from one of the TV's mounted near the ceiling to the brunette next to him. He nods at her just as the bartender gets him the beers he ordered, and he grabs them, and walks back to the table. Erin gives him a questioning look, and he shakes his head as he gets closer.

"I'll tell you later." He whispers in her ear as she takes a beer from his hand, and he places a beer in front of Nadia.

"Thanks." Nadia quickly says, before rejoining the conversation

"Greg can we talk?" Abby comes up, and asks. Mouse nods, and they all seem to watch them leave the bar.

About ten minutes later, Mouse comes back by himself, a blank expression on his face.

"Hey everything ok?" Erin asks after Mouse takes a large gulp of his beer, and he shakes his head, as he walks to the bar. He puts down some money, and then walks back to the table.

"Happy Birthday, I'll see ya around." He says before he leaves.

Erin looks at Jay, and nudges him as she nods in the direction that Mouse is walking, and he nods; bending down to kiss her forehead before following his best friend.

"Hey Mouse, what's going on?"

"Like you don't know?"

"I don't know."

"I asked you if there was something you weren't telling me, and you obviously lied. What happened between you two?" Mouse snaps, and Jay looks down.

"Back in Vegas, we were drinking, she came back to my hotel room, and she said she wanted to get married, and that she loved me."

"Why didn't you just tell me the other day?"

"I thought maybe she forgot, or she did feel the she thought she did then, man I'm sorry. I'm going to go talk to her."

"For what? She didn't come here for me, she came here for you. What are you going to say to her? That she should keep pretending to love me?" Mouse says; his voice shaking.

"Nah I'm good man." He adds as he turns to walk away.

"Mouse." Jay yells, but Mouse just keeps walking.

"Mouse." He says again, but Mouse just gets in his car.

"Damn it." He says as he turns to go back into the bar.

"Hey, he ok?" Erin asks when he gets to the table.

"Yeah, he's gonna be ok."

"Good, Nads just went to get some shots, I'll have her get you one too." Erin says as she starts to stand from the stool.

"Uh actually I have to run back to my mom's really quick."

"I'll come with you."

"No stay babe." He says with a smile, and kiss to her lips.

"Have fun, I'll be right back."

"Ok." She says, and he gives her another kiss, before he leaves. The guilt of lying to her intensifies with every step he takes, and continues to get worse as he parks in front of his best friends apartment building. He thinks about just going back to Lottie's briefly before taking the keys out of the ignition, and exiting the truck. He walks up to the apartment, and knocks lightly. It only takes a few seconds before the door swings open, and he's met with Abby's dark brown eyes.

"Jay-"

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Jay I just wanted to see you again, see if you had a change of heart. We can make this work."

"There is no we Abby. I'm with Erin, and I love her, and you, you made Mouse really happy Abby. He deserves that."

"He's a great guy, but he's not you Jay." She says taking a couple steps towards him.

"You're right, he's better than me Abby." He says, putting his hand up, and taking a few steps back so he's standing in the hall again.

"Is that what you came here for to tell me to stay with him."

"Yes."

"You never even gave us a chance."

"Give Mouse a chance."

"Despite what you think Jay, you are a good guy." Abby says walking up to him again, and he nods.

"I have someone waiting for me, but you should talk to him." He says, and walks away before she tries anything. When he gets outside, Mouse is just getting out his car.

XXXXXX

Back at Lottie's, Kim, and Hailey have already had enough, and Hailey offers to take Erin and Nadia home after dropping Kim and Adam off at their car at Ms. Belle's. They pay the tab, and head out.

When they drive down the gravel drive way leading up to Ms. Belle's house, and they're on their way to the cabin. She unlocks the front door, and thinks about Jay, and figures they probably just missed each other at Lottie's. She gets Nadia situated in the guestroom; setting up a bucket next to the bed, and a glass of water along with some aspirin. She moves some of her dark brown hair out of her face, and leaves the room; picking Chloe up after almost tripping on her. She pulls her phone out of her pocket, and calls Jay.

XXXXXX

"I told you not to come here." Mouse says when he gets closer to him

"I had to try to make things right Mouse."

"No, no you didn't Jay. Every time I've had a crush on a girl, or begin to get close to having a relationship. I find out that they only wanted you, they get close to me to get to you man, and I'm done coming in second. Just leave me alone, and go live your perfect life, and stay out of mine." He says as he walks inside.

Jay walks to his truck, and sits in the seat for a while, before his phone ringing breaks him from his thoughts.

"Hey babe, I'm just leaving my mom's now, and I'll be there in a few minutes." He says, and her heart sinks as she thinks back to just fifteen minutes prior when they were at Ms. Belle's. His truck wasn't there, and all the lights were off. She hadn't thought about it until he utter those words, and she realizes he's lying.

"Actually we're already home." She says sadly.

"Alright then I'll come home."

"Ok."

"Ok see you in a few minutes babe, love you." He says, but she doesn't say anything back for minute.

"You too." She says, and she slowly takes the phone from her ear, and hangs up; blinking back tears that are threatening to fall.

When he gets home he walks straight to their bedroom. He finds her, sitting on the edge of the bed, Chloe in her arms, and tears rolling silently down her face.

"Hey what's wrong?"

"Where'd you go?" She says as she wipes her tears away.

"I told you I went to my mom's."

"Try again Jay."

"Babe."

"Hailey dropped Kim, and Adam off at their car, before dropping us off here. Your truck wasn't there, and all the lights were off, but you just said you were just leaving her house."

"I can explain."

"You promised you wouldn't keep things from me, and you lied to me Jay." She says getting up, and starting to pace.

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"Just please tell me that it doesn't have to do with whatever was going on with you and Abby at the bar?" She says

"There was nothing going between us at the bar."

"Really?"

"Really, you know me, I would never do that to you."

"Well I don't know you as well as I thought."

"I'm not a cheater Erin, never have and never will be, and it hurts to know that you could possibly think that of me."

"What else am I supposed to think Jay? You fucking lied to me, and went off to see another women who you obviously have history with, and who's obviously not over you. So please tell me what the hell am I supposed to think."

"Why the hell are you two yelling? You're supposed to be having birthday sex." Nadia drunkenly slurs as she slightly stumbles into their room.

"Come on Nads, I'll take you back to your room." Erin says, wanting a break from the heated conversation with her boyfriend.

"Can we make a pit stop to the kitchen? I'm staaarrrving" Nadia whispers loudly.

"Sure Nads." Erin replies looking back at Jay, and she just looks sad. It makes him hate himself for not just telling her the truth in the first place.

Erin starts to make Nadia a sandwich, but Nadia stumbles back into the guestroom, and passes out before Erin even finishes. Jay comes out while she's putting the stuff away.

"Can I explain?" He asks, as she closes the fridge

"I'm tired, and would like to just go to sleep, we can talk tomorrow."

"I was taught to never go to bed angry."

"I guess it's a good thing I'm not angry." She says as she walks past him. She goes to another one of the guest bedrooms, and closes the door. She takes a couple deep breaths as she locks the door before making her way to the side of the bed where she removes her jeans, and bra; leaving her just her t shirt, and underwear. Scratching at the door stops her from getting on the bed, and she walks over to let the dogs in. Carly looks back at who she assumes is Jay before she too walks in, and she shuts the door again. She then climbs into the bed, and pulls the covers up. She's exhausted, her whole body feels heavy, yet she can't fall asleep. In the room next store, he lays the same way, looking up at the ceiling. Neither of them get any sleep before Jay walks into the room she's in, seeing that she's still awake. He sits next to her on the bed, and cups her jaw as a lone tear escapes her eye, and rolls over the skin of her temple. He turns her face towards him before he begins to talk.

XXXXXX

A/N: Thank you to those of you still reading along, and those of you who just followed, or favorited this story. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and are having a nice week so far. Much Love, and Please Review!


	27. Chapter 27

“I was taught to never go to bed angry.”   
“I guess it's a good thing I'm not angry.” She says as she walks past him. She goes to another one of the guest bedrooms, and closes the door. She takes a couple deep breaths as she locks the door before making her way to the side of the bed where she removes her jeans, and bra; leaving her just her t shirt, and underwear. Scratching at the door stops her from getting on the bed, and she walks over to let the dogs in. Carly looks back who she assumes is Jay before she too walks in, and she shuts the door again. She then climbs into the bed, and pulls the covers up. She's exhausted, her whole body feels heavy, yet she can't fall asleep. In the room next store, he lays the same way, looking up at the ceiling. Neither of them get any sleep before Jay walks into the room she's in, seeing that she's still awake. He sits next to her on the bed, and cups her jaw as a lone tear escapes her eye, and rolls over the skin of her temple. He turns her face towards him before he begins to talk.   
XXXXXX   
“I'm sorry, I thought it’d be better not to tell you where I was going. I was sure you’d think something was going on between Abby and I.”   
“And you thought lying to me about going to see her, would be better?” She asks sarcastically  
“I know it was stupid, I'm sorry, I'm sorry I ruined your birthday, and I'm sorry I left Lottie's.”  
“Tell me what your history with Abby is.” She says sitting up.   
“There is no history Erin, at least not the kind of history you're thinking of.”  
“There you go lying again Jay.”   
“It's really not what you think.” He says taking a deep breath.   
“Abby ran cultural support during my last tour. Mouse and I became really close with her, and we all met up in Vegas a few weeks after coming home. It was for a funeral for a guy in our unit who didn't make it back. We were all pretty shook up; blacking out most nights. The last night I was there, was the most sober night I had in weeks. Mouse was passed out in our hotel room, and Abby and I went back to her room.” He says, and he sees her; feels her body tense. “We just talked and laughed about stuff I don’t even remember, but then she says we should get married. I thought she was joking, but she was serious, and she even said she loved me.”   
“What'd you say?” Erin asks quietly.   
“I said I didn't feel that about her, and I left, and came back here.”   
“Did you?” She asks, and he gives her a confused look.   
“Did you really not feel that way about her?” She clarifies   
“Why is that important?”   
“It’s not, I just want to know.”   
“I honestly didn't feel that way about her, not then and certainly not now. I love you.” He says both of his hands up to cup her face, and leaning to kiss her but she turns her head  
“I love you too Jay, but you still lied to me again.”   
“I know, but it won't happen again.” He says quietly, and she nods.   
“I’m tired, I'm going to try to get some sleep.” She says laying down again.   
“You're not going to come to our bed.”   
“I just need some space Jay.” She says, and then there's a pregnant pause as he watches her roll onto her side, so her back is to him.   
“Right.” He says sadly, and he places a kiss to her head, before getting up, and leaving the room. Once he closes the door, more tears fall from her eyes, and she eventually cries herself to sleep.   
Later that morning Jay peaks his head in the room, to see her in the same position as when he left, before going to work.   
XXXXXX   
They don't have a case, and he's mostly caught up on his paperwork so he goes home to bring them lunch. Nadia is sitting in the living room watching what he thinks is Avatar, but he doesn't take the time to stop, and confirm it. He simply nods his head in greeting, and hopes to see his girl in the kitchen. But his mood worsens when he sees she's not there. He sets the food down on the counter, and walks back out, and stands by the leather chair near the door.  
“Has she come out at all?” He asks, and Nadia looks at him, and shakes her head.   
“She's still sleeping.”   
“I’m glad she fell asleep.”   
“It's a good thing she fell asleep, but I can tell she was crying.” She says, and he looks down.   
“You want to tell me what you guys were arguing about this morning?” She asks, and then he looks up at her, confused.   
“I may have been tipsy Jay, but I do remember that.” She says sternly, and he once again looks down.   
“She's going to tell me anyways.”   
“Then I'll let her tell you. Lunch is on the counter for you both. I'll be back in a few hours.” He says walking towards the door.  
“Jay.” She says so he turns back around.  
“You're the kind of man she deserves, you make her the happiest I've ever seen her and she loves you so much, and I can tell the same goes for you with her, so don't screw this up.” She says, and he nods.   
“Thanks Nadia.” He says, and it's her to nod as he leaves.   
Once he's gone she goes to the room that Erin is sleeping in, and sits on the edge of the bed. She shakes her shoulder, and says her name.  
“How are you up so early?”   
“It's noon, so I think the better question is, why are you still sleeping? And why are you sleeping in the guestroom?”   
“It's noon?” Erin asks groggily, looking at her, and Nadia nods.  
“Yeah, Jay just dropped off lunch for us.”   
“Oh.”   
“Yeah, we can talk while we eat.” Nadia suggests, before getting up. Erin rubs her eyes, and throws the covers off, before following her friend to the kitchen. She goes over everything, and Nadia just nods up until Erin says  
“I think I'm going to go home with you.”   
Nadia narrows her eyes at her, and shakes her head.   
“What?”   
“I can't let you run from this, from him, Erin. Fine if you want to visit Chicago, but like I said the day you came back here, Chicago isn't where your heart is, not anymore. This town, this house, that man is your home now. I get that he-"  
“Nadia I'm not running, and I'm not staying in Chicago, I'm just taking some time, and I miss everyone.”   
“Ok, take a break from each other, teach him a lesson, but you're coming home to him. Understood?”   
“Yes ma'am.” Erin says jokingly   
“I'm serious Erin.”   
“I know.”   
“You know I'm leaving tonight right?”   
“Yeah.”   
“What about your job?”   
“I just asked Hailey, and she said they’ll be fine.”  
“Alright.”   
“Are you good now?”   
“Yup.” Nadia says, popping the p.   
“Great, I’m going to go pack.” Erin says when she finishes her food; throwing her container away on the way to their room.   
XXXXXX   
“Hey.” He says as he walks into the kitchen a few hours later.   
“Hey.” Erin says, turning her head to look at him briefly before turning her attention back to the alfredo sauce in the pan on the stove.   
“What's up buttercup? How was work?” Nadia says cheerfully, Erin grins at her friend, and Jay chuckles lightly.   
“Boring, but I guess in my line of work, boring is good, cause it means there's no crimes to investigate.”   
“Boring is good, got it.” Nadia says taking another sip of her wine.   
“How was your girl's day?”   
“Ok.” Erin says, as Nadia hops off the counter.   
“Good, I'm going to take a shower before dinner.” Nadia says before finishing her wine.   
“Tell him now.” She whispers in Erin's ear as she walks past her towards the guestroom. Jay waits until Nadia shuts the door behind her before he questions his girlfriend.   
“What do you need to tell me now?” He ask stepping towards her. She turns the stove off, and moves the pan over, before turning around.   
“I'm going with Nadia tonight.” She says, and he grins, and chuckles lightly at first before realizing that she wasn't kidding.   
“You're serious?” He says louder than he intended  
“Jay, I just….I just need some time.”   
“You're leaving?” He says as he begins to pace.  
“It's just for a little bit, I miss Chicago, and my old friends.”   
“A little bit, how fucking long is a little bit Erin?” He yells.   
“Don't you think you're overreacting a little?”  
“Not when you're telling me you're leaving for who knows how long, after you promised me you wouldn't run.”   
“And you lied to me after you promised you wouldn't keep things from me yet here we fucking are Jay.” She yells back, they both take deep breaths; letting themselves calm a little before she speaks again.   
“Dinners ready, I'm going to go make sure I have everything I need.”   
“Erin.” He says; grabbing arm gently as she goes to walk past him. She gives him a look that causes him to release her arm. She continues to their room, and she stays there until it's time for them to leave.   
Jay drives them to the train station, and neither Jay nor Erin saying a word as Nadia sings lightly in the back seat. When they get to the station Jay grabs their bags out of the back, and them over. Nadia gives him a hug, and whispers  
“She'll be back soon.” Before she pulls out of the hug. Jay then looks at Erin, who's looking off in another direction.   
“Let me know when you're on your way back.” He says sadly, and Erin nods.   
“I love you.” She says, and it makes Jay feel better about this situation, and it has him weakly smiling at her.   
“I love you too, have fun babe.” He says, and with that she turns, and walks towards the red brick building. He watches them, her until he can't see her anymore, before he gets back into his truck.   
XXXXXX   
A week later Erin is sitting in the Voight's yellow and white kitchen, while Camille gets them a cup of tea.   
“So you're here because he lied to you?”   
“No, I missed everyone, and I wanted to see them for longer than an hour.”   
“But the main reason you're here is because your boyfriend lied to you, and you were upset!”   
“I guess.”   
“Listen dear, people lie, good people, bad people, people we love. They make mistakes just like you and I, and if we ran every time the people we love the most made a mistake, we would be all alone.”   
“But he promised he wouldn't keep things from me anymore.” Erin says, and Camille grins at that as she brings her mug up, and takes a sip. When she replaces the mug on the table, she sighs, and Erin can tell she's thinking  
“When Hank, and I first got married, there was these few weeks, where he didn't come home at night, some were because of the job, and I had to except that, that was going to be my life being married to a cop, but then there was a few nights where he said that he was going out for drinks, and he would come home around bar close, but not smell like he usually did after a night at the bar. Then he came home and smelt like perfume, and the next day a women called here, and asked if I could tell Hank she said thank you for the night before.”   
“What'd you do?”   
“I told him, and I watched him squirm in his seat, and stumble over his words as he explained that she was in the academy with him, and he heard she was having a hard time with a recent case of hers, and he was going to help her get through it on those nights.”   
“Why didn't he just tell you?”   
“He said that he didn't want me doubting his love for me, and he realized how stupid it was not just telling me, but he was sorry.”   
“And you forgave him obviously.”  
“Not right away, but I didn't run, I stayed and eventually we worked through it.” Camille says, and Erin nods.   
“I'm not saying lying is ok, because it's not at all, but you have to pick your battles Erin. That man is crazy about you, and is probably kicking his own ass for this.”   
“Thanks mom.” She says, pulling her phone out, and looking up the train schedule; purchasing a ticket for the noon train, which is in a hour.   
“Now when do we have you til?”   
“Actually, I'm going home.”   
“Great.” Camille says clearly proud of herself.   
“Can you give me a ride please?”   
“Of course.”   
XXXXXX   
That night Jay’s laying in bed with the dogs surrounding him when his phone buzzes next to him  
Nadia-Hey Jay, I think I left my tablet there, can you just check for me please? Otherwise I lost it at the train station.   
Jay-Where would you have put it?  
Nadia-The top drawer of the dresser next to the door.   
Jay- Alright I'll go look for it   
He picks Chloe up as he gets up, and walks with her to the guestroom at the front of the house. He opens the drawer she said it'd be in, and it's sitting there right next the box with his Nana's ring in it. He picks up the tablet, and puts on the kitchen counter; making a mental note to send it to Nadia. Then he goes back, and grabs the little box; bringing it with him back to their room. He lays down again, and Chloe falls back to sleep on his abdomen, while he texts Nadia   
Jay-It was in the drawer, I'll send it to you tomorrow   
Nadia-Thanks   
Jay-No problem. How is she doing?  
Nadia-Good, how are you doing?  
Jay-Alright I guess  
Nadia-Right, well goodnight, thanks again  
Jay-Goodnight Nadia  
He puts the phone down, and opens the small jewelry box. He traces the velvet pillow, as he envisions the gold ring on her soft, petite hand. He can picture it, on her finger, shining in the early morning sun as her hand rests on his chest, or twinkling in the moonlight as her fingers clutch the sheets as she falls over the blissful edge. He wishes he hadn't lied to her, and he wishes he would have asked her to marry him the day he got the ring. He’s broken from his thoughts when the front door opens, causing Chance, and Carly to bark. Chloe jumps, and places her on the bed with one hand, while setting the ring down on the nightstand before he goes to see who's coming into the house.   
“Hi.” He says surprised as she looks up at him from where's she's knelt in front of the dogs.   
“Hi, I'm sorry if I woke you.”  
“No, I wasn't sleeping, haven't really been sleeping”   
“I’m sorry for that too Jay.”   
“I'm sorry too.”   
“I love you, and I missed you.”   
“I love, and missed you too.” He says as they take steps towards each other, and he finally gets to hold her, and kiss her.   
“I’m glad you came home to me.”   
“Always.” She whispers against his lips, before giving him another slow kiss.   
“Where's Chl-“ She begins to ask, but the muffled noise their puppy lets out from down the hall stops her. Chloe trots towards them with something in her mouth, and Jay realizes what it is, but there's nothing that can be done as Erin kneels down, and pulls the puppy into her arms; taking the jewelry box out of her mouth. Jay smiles weakly at her, as he decides to get down on one knee. He wipes his hands up and down his pants, and takes a deep breath, before doing what he wished he would have done last week.   
XXXXXX   
A/N: Let me know what you think about this update. There's only a few more chapters left, and I hope you all enjoy them. Thanks, and Much Love.


	28. Chapter 28

“Always.” She whispers against his lips, before giving him another slow kiss.   
“Where's Chl-“ She begins to ask, but the muffled noise their puppy lets out from down the hall stops her. Chloe trots towards them with something in her mouth, and Jay realizes what it is, but there's nothing that can be done as Erin kneels down, and pulls the puppy into her arms; taking the jewelry box out of her mouth. Jay smiles weakly at her, as he decides to get down on one knee. He wipes his hands up and down his pants, and takes a deep breath, before doing what he wished he would have done last week.   
XXXXXX   
“I should have done this last week, and that’s just another thing I'm sorry for. It was wrong of me to lie to you, and I promise to never do it again. And other than that, this last week has taught me that there are so many things, and people that come and go, and I don't want you to come and go. I love you more than I knew was humanly possible, and I can't imagine life without you. So Erin Lindsay will you do me the incredible honor of marrying me?”   
“Hmmm I don't know.” She says, and Jay's smile falls  
“I'm kidding Jay, yes of course I'll marry you.” She says handing him the box, and he takes the ring out, as she puts Chloe down. He takes her hand in his, her soft skin sliding along his rough, callused skin sends a new sensation from the tips of his fingers down to his toes, causing his smile to widen. The ring fits perfectly, and once it's in place he presses a kiss just above it. He stands up then, and she keeps her eyes on her hand. He places two fingers under her chin, and pushes up so her teary eyes meet his.  
“I love you too.” She says giving him a kiss “So much.” She adds, looking at her hand laying on his chest, more specifically the ring on her finger.  
“It's beautiful.”   
“It was my Nana's.”   
“What?”   
“My Nana gave my mom her engagement ring when she was sick, told her to give it to Will or I when we found the one. When Will was planning on proposing to Natalie, I thought he'd take it, but he went, and bought one; said she really wanted me to have it for my girl.” He says, giving her another kiss. Chloe barks from her spot between their feet, causing them to pull apart, and look down. Jay picks her up, and she licks his face as he stands up straight again. Erin pets the puppy, as she turns in his arms, and licks her face with even more enthusiasm. The big stone twinkles in the soft light of the living room as she runs her fingers through the thick black fur of the youngest member of their family.   
XXXXXX   
One year later   
The constant clicking of her heels against the marble of the old courthouse seems slow, and calm compared to the hammering of his heart. He thinks back when they first discussed adopting, in hopes calming his nerves.   
*Flashback*  
They're laying in bed after visiting the youngest members of the Halstead, Ruzek, and Atwater families.   
“When my brother told me that Nat was pregnant, he said you’re having the next one.” Jay says with a chuckle. “I guess I never would have thought we’d be here, five months away from our wedding, and hopefully not too far away from that being true.” He says, and he looks down to where she's laying on his chest. She's tracing mindless patterns on his skin, and she's staring at the front of the room.   
“Babe.” He says, gently squeezing her side.   
“Uh yeah, that's crazy.”   
“Did you even hear what I said?”   
“Yeah.”   
“What's wrong?”   
“Nothing.”   
“Erin, what are you thinking about?”   
“I want to adopt.” She blurts out.   
“Oook.” He says sitting up some. He knew she wanted kids, he sees the way her eyes light up in a different way when they would hang out with Owen, and Kenzie, and even more so when holding the babies. But he hadn't expected that. The subject of them having kids of their own, hadn't come up yet, until now, and he figured he should say something more, but he didn't know what to say. He didn't have anything against adopting, in fact he loved the idea, but he also wanted a baby that was half her, and half him. Maybe it was selfish, but ever since holding his new nephew, and his best friend’s sons, that’s all he's been able to think about. He can see her with a baby on the way, and can see her nesting, can hear her waking him up in the middle of the night to get her some kind of crazy craving and he can see her pacing in the white and grey hospital gown, as she waits not so patiently for her body to be ready to deliver their baby. A child they created together, their love personified. He was all for adopting, but he was hoping she’d be willing to carry one of their children too.  
Realizing she should probably say a little more, has her sitting up too. Peeling her skin away from his for the first time since they got home. She holds the sheet against her chest, as if he hasn’t seen her naked before. She wants kids, and she's thought about having his someday, but then she thought about it more, and thinking about her past had her coming to the decision that she wants to adopt. She just hoped he agreed with her.   
“I know that's probably not what you expected, or maybe not even what you want, but I want to put that on the table. When the Voight's took me in, one of the things I thought about the most was how easy life would have been if Hank had found me sooner.”   
“I can understand that.” He says a little more sadly than he would have liked, he looks down, and fiddles with the sheet covering him from the waist down.   
“But its not what you want.” Erin says matter-of-factly.   
“I didn't say that.”   
“You didn't have to.” She says defensively. There's a few minutes where the room is silent, both of them thinking of what to say.   
“It's not that I don't like the idea of adopting-" He begins, and she looks up at him. “I guess I was just hoping that we could have a biological child.”   
“What if I don't want that? what if I can't give you that?”   
“That's fine, Erin.” He says, and he means it, but not quite sure what she means by her last question.   
She can tell he wants to ask; wants to know what she means, but he doesn't say anything. She takes a long deep breath before tells him.   
“After Annie was killed, I was a mess, and I'd just turned twenty one, I was out drinking, among other things, but I made sure to get cleaned up before the trial. I had been through detox and withdrawal before, but that time I just felt different. Hank, and Camille had me do weekly drug tests, and I did, but the first week the results came back that I was pregnant.” She says; taking a brief break. He just pulls her a little closer to him, but there's still enough space between them, that he can still look her in the eyes. “Camille took me to her doctor right away, and we found out that I was six weeks along. It was unreal, but it was what I didn’t know I needed. I took the pamphlets, and the prenatal vitamins. I'd force myself to eat, even if I knew it would come back up rather quickly. With each day, maybe even with every hour I would become a little more excited and infatuated with the thought of a little being growing inside me. But it only lasted just shy of six weeks. The night before the twelve week mark, I had a miscarriage. The doctor, the nurses, Camille and even Hank told me it's more common then most women realize, or it happens, and it's not my fault. I understood that it happens, but hearing any of that didn't make me feel any better. I lost my baby, and I thought maybe it was my punishment.” She says; wiping away a tear, and that's when he tries to pull her completely into him, but she puts her hand on his chest to stop him.   
“Erin.”  
“I didn't tell you that, so you'd feel bad. I told so you know why I'm scared to get pregnant.” She says loudly, and he doesn't know what to say, so he attempts to pull her into his embrace again, and this time she lets him. They don't say anything for a while, before he speaks.   
“I'm sorry that you went through that babe, and if you want to adopt than I'm completely fine with that. You're going to be an amazing mom to our kids, no matter what.” He says, and she opens her mouth to say something, but closes it quickly, and instead buries face further into his chest.   
*End of Flashback*   
They had decided to do their research, and get in touch with the best adoption agencies soon after having that late night conversation in hopes that they'd be able to adopt a child not long after their wedding. And they got a call on the second day of their honeymoon, letting them know that there was a ten month old whom had just lost his mother, their reception was bad so Ms. Brown kept cutting out. They switched their flight home for an earlier one, spending one more day on their honeymoon before they went back to Wisconsin, and so here they are now, waiting to meet their son.   
“Mr. And Mrs. Halstead, would you mind coming into my office for the paperwork?” Mrs. Brown comes out, and they both nod without even looking at each other. They follow Mrs. Brown into her office, and take a seat.   
“So before we get started I'd like to tell you about the boys.”   
“Wait did you say boys?” Erin asks confused.  
“Yes, Joshua and Jonah.”   
“We thought there's was just the ten month old.” Erin says  
“Oh no, Jonah has a three year old brother, we'd like to keep them together. I'm sorry I thought I told you that the other day on the phone.”   
“You probably did, but we had bad reception.” Erin says, looking at Jay; her eyes wide, and he reaches and gives her hand reassuring squeeze.  
“So why did their family give them up?” Jay asks  
“Their mother overdosed five months ago, at which time their maternal grandmother received custody, only for her to sign over custody last month.” Erin got the chills, and her heart wrenched for these little boys.   
“What about their father?” Jay asks next  
“He was shot, and killed before Jonah was born, and he had no next of kin.” She answers  
“Despite all they've been through in the last few months they're both incredibly sweet little boys.” Mrs. Brown adds, even though the newly married couple was already ready to take their boys home without the statement. She seemed to catch on, and placed the paperwork in front of Jay first who signed without a moment's hesitation, and then Erin signed.   
“Do we get to meet them now?” Jay asks excitedly.   
“Of course, right this way.”   
“You ready babe?” He looks at her and asks as he gently pulls her to her feet. She just nods at a loss for words, and he smiles, and gives her quick soft kiss. They follow Mrs. Brown to a play room, with red, green, yellow, and blue padded floors, and kid's drawings adorn the walls. Mrs. Brown walks over to the back corner around a book case, where there's a little boy playing with a tiny cop car, and a German Shepherd figurine, and young brunette is sitting in a rocking chair with a baby. There's no doubt that they're brothers just looking at their light tan skin, and brown wavy hair.   
“This is Joshua, and this little one is Jonah.” Mrs. Brown says plucking the baby out of the other woman’s arms. Erin kneels down next to Joshua.  
“Hi Joshua, my name is Erin, and this is Jay.”   
“Hi.” He says back, a little timidly.  
“Whacha got there bud?” Erin asks pointing to the toys in his hand, while Jay takes Jonah from Mrs. Brown.   
“This is Chase, and his car.”   
“Chase from Paw Patrol?” Jay asks from his spot where he's gently bouncing Jonah in his arms.  
“Well we have dogs that look just like Chase, but their names are Chance and Chloe.”   
“Really? Can I see them?” Josh asks excitedly   
“Of course you can.”   
“Can Jonah come too?”   
“Yes your brother can come too.”   
“Yay!” The three year old says and takes Erin by surprise when he lunges into her arms, and gives her a hug. She wraps her arms around him, and feels as if her heart is going to explode. She stands up still holding him, and she turns toward Jay who's looking at a sleeping Jonah, and then up at her. He gives her a smile, and she gives one in return before they leave for the first as a family of four.   
XXXXXX


	29. Chapter 29

A year and a half later

She drives up to her mother in law's grey and white farmhouse. Her stomach churns, and as turns the car off. She quickly unbuckles her seatbelt, and opens the door to throw up on the gravel of the driveway.

"Mama?" Josh says from the back seat.

"Yeah buddy?"

"Are you staying at Mima's too?"

"No, just you and your brother ok?"

"Ok." He says

"Ok, let's go inside." Erin says after a few deep breaths. She gets out of the car, and helps Jonah out, and they all walk up to the porch together.

Ms. Belle opens the door, as they start up the stairs. Jonah and Josh both hug their grandma before running over to their great grandpa, and the dog.

"Are you feeling ok sweetheart?"

"Yeah I'm ok." She answers

"Oh so did you just have something that didn't agree with you?" She asks next, nodding over to the car.

"Uh yeah I think so."

"You think so, or is there something else it could be?"

"I don't know." Erin says with a smirk.

"Alright well I'll stop grilling you, and let you go find out, and we'll see you tomorrow."

"Thank you Ms. Belle."

"No thanks necessary sweetheart." Ms. Belle says as Erin walks over to her sons, and gives each of them a kiss on the head.

"Behave for Mima, and Papa James ok?"

"Ok mama." Josh says, as he continues petting Finn.

"Ok goodnight, I love you."

"Love you too." They say in unison, and then she stands up, and leaves. She goes straight to the store before heading home.

Her hands are shaking as she unwraps the first test, and her heart is pounding once she pees on the stick, and places it on the wrapper.

A few minutes later the timer goes off, and then her phone rings as she looks at the white stick in her hand.

"Hello." She says into the phone.

"Hey Erin?"

"Yeah, Adam what's up?"

"Can you come to the hospital?" He says in a serious voice, something that she's not used to with him.

"Why what happened? Where's Jay?"

"He's been shot." He says, and it's as if the world came to a stop. Hearing those words made her feel the complete opposite of how felt just moments ago.

"I'll be right there." She says as she places the test back on the vanity, before grabbing her keys and rushing off to the hospital. Tears stream down her face, as she quickly drives to her husband.

About a hour later, she's emptying the rest of the contents of her stomach into the waste bin just outside the waiting room.

"Mrs. Halstead?"

"Yes, that's uh me."

"Of course, your husband can be seen now. It was a simple through and through on his thigh, and the bullet to his abdomen missed any major organs, but it did hit an abdominal artery. We repaired it, but he's not of the woods yet. If the blood supply to his organs were cut off for too long, he may be at risk."

"Where is he?" Erin says, as they walk back inside.

She cautiously walks into the room assigned to her husband, and there he is sleeping in the small hospital bed. Tears fall from her eyes as she goes to sit next to him.

"Hey babe, I don't know if you can hear me, it's probably better if you can't cause I really don't know what to say to you, but I love you, and our boys love you, so please come back to us. Please?" She says with a sniffle.

There's several minutes, where the room is silent except for the beeping of the machines, his light, even breathing, and the sound of her tear drops hitting the light grey blanket, and where her hand is clasping his.

"Josh drew a picture for you today at daycare." She says, and then she takes a break to wipe her cheeks, before she continues. "He was so excited when he was climbing into the car to go to your mom's, he put it in the front seat so I'd remember to give it to you for him. If I wasn't so afraid to let go of your hand, I'd go get it for you. It's pretty good for a four year old, you can tell he drew you as Superman, with your hands on your hips, and your chest is all puffed out, and in the background is him, and Jonah, and me, and the dogs of course." She says, and it makes her feel better telling him about the boys.

"And Jonah asked where his daddy was when I was buckling him in." She says with a sad smile.

"They need you Jay, our babies, all three of them." She adds placing her hand that's not attached to his, onto her still flat stomach. "They need you to wake up, and be ok, and so do I."

"He's going to be ok sweetheart, he'd never leave the them." Ms. Belle says from the door way.

"Or you." She adds as she walks closer to her daughter-in-law. She puts her hand on her shoulder, and she can feeling her shaking. Erin looks at her husband, and then up at his mom. A fresh batch of tears run down her cheeks as she stands to give her a hug. Her hand still clutching his. She pulls back, and asks

"Where are my-?"

"They're with Kim, I just wanted to come see him, and see how you were." Ms. Belle says, and Erin nods, taking a seat again.

"So three, huh?" Ms. Belle asks after a few moments, causing Erin to let out a sad laugh, and nod. She wants him to wake up, she needs to see his beautiful eyes, and tell him that he's going to be a daddy again, and she doesn't want to leave his side until then.

XXXXXX

A/N: We're almost done, just one more chapter. Thanks to those of you still following along, and reviewing


	30. Chapter 30

Little feet hitting the floor, has him sitting up quickly, and rushing to grab his boxers pff the floor, but when he leans over to where he last saw them, he sees they're gone. He rubs his eyes, as he quickly grabs a clean pair from one of his drawers; putting them on just in time. The door to their bedroom swings open, and slams against the wall behind it

"Daddy!" Their three and a half year old yells to Jay. Jay laughs when he sees his son running towards him in nothing but his Paw Patrol underwear. He scoops him up; throws him up in the air, and then catches him.

"Hey monkey where are your clothes?" Jay asks; knowing full well that he had on pajamas when he went to bed last night. Jonah looks at him confused

"Where are your clothes daddy?" Jonah shoots back, and Jay's surprised, and his cheeks turn pink.

"Fair enough little man." He says as he places a kiss to his son's cheek, as he walks down the hall in search of Erin.

"Where's mommy, huh?" She hears Jay ask, as she finishes burping their two month old. She then places him in his eager big brother's arms, who's sitting in the middle of the big light blue lazy boy, bought specifically for Jonah, and Josh to hold him, with either Erin or Jay sitting next to them; supporting their baby's head.

"Good morning, you're up early little man." Jay says as they walk in.

"Emmett was crying really loud." Josh says to his dad.

"Yeah daddy you were the last one up." Jonah adds, still in his father's arms.

"I didn't know everyone was up already." He says tickling Jonah for a second, before turning his attention back their oldest, and youngest sons, and then his wife. He feels bad, seeing how exhausted she looks, but she's still wearing a beautiful, tired smile.

"Hey monkeys, why don't you go to one of your rooms, and play and I'll make breakfast in a minute." Jay says to Josh, and Jonah; taking Emmett from Josh. He looks down at their youngest son, as he snuggles into his chest, he's still in awe of how tiny he is, and he's afraid he'll hurt him. He sits down next to his wife, and kisses the side of her face as she looks at Jonah, and Josh across the hall, before she turns her head to look at him.

"Good morning beautiful."

"Morning." She all but whispers.

"Why don't you go lay back down? I'll take care of the munchkins." He says, expecting her to say no like she normally would, but she doesn't have it in her today. She gives him a kiss. "Thank you." She whispers against his lips, while his eyes are still closed.

"You don't have to thank me, I wish I could do more."

"You're doing fine babe." She places a kiss on Emmett's head, and goes to their room. He watches her go, and finds himself thinking 'There's my boxers." as he takes in the black and red material covering her from her waist to her mid-thighs. He licks his lips, and then shakes his head as refocuses on the bundle sleeping against him. He chuckles lightly, when he sees the corner of his baby's mouth twitch, and then curl up into a half smile.

"Alright bud, lets go make your brothers, and mommy some breakfast." He says, as he stands with him nestled in the crook of one arm, and he goes to the living room to grab the baby swing. He effortlessly moves the grey, white, and mint colored piece of baby furniture to where the kitchen counter ends. Emmett fusses a little when his father puts him down; buckles him in and quickly turns the swing on. Jay then goes to grab him a blanket; hoping he'll sleep long enough to let his mom get a few more hours sleep. Once Emmett settles down again, Jay sets out to make pancakes.

He goes to the boys room, when the food is ready, to tell them to wash up for breakfast, and then he goes back to the kitchen. Emmett stays asleep while Jay gets Josh, and Jonah's plates together, and sets them on the table, but when Jonah comes out of the bathroom a little too excitedly, the baby jumps, and squirms, but he doesn't wake up somehow. Jonah's brown eyes go wide, and his hand goes over his mouth briefly.

"Sorry daddy." He says sadly.

"It's ok buddy, just sit down, and eat your breakfast please."

About an hour, and a half later, they move to the living room. Where Jay and Jonah build stuff with Legos on the table, Josh colors in a coloring book at the other end, and Emmett is still sleeping in the swing that was moved back to the living room.

Erin comes out, and watches them quietly for a moment, and then she walks into the kitchen to get some food, before Emmett needs to be fed again.

"Hey, how'd you sleep?" Jay asks quietly as he sneaks up behind her, and wraps his arm around her waist.

"Good, thanks." She says, as she reheats her food on the stove.

"Good." He mumbles, kissing her neck, causing her to lean back against him.

"I talked to Kim." He says next, and she hums in acknowledgment.

"She said that they're going shopping, and out to eat. She was wondering if you wanted to go with?"

"I don't know."

"What don't you know?"

"I kind of wanted to hang out at home with you guys today." She says turning the stove off.

"Come on babe, you've barely left the house since having Emmett. It'll only be a few hours." He says

"Are you sure you'll be ok with them?"

"We'll be fine."

"Will you call me if you're not?"

"No, cause I can handle a few hours alone with my own children." He says somewhat defensively.

"Jay, that's not what I meant." She says sternly

"Well it sure as hell felt like that's what you meant" He says just Emmett starts to cry.

"Well it's not." She says before she goes to get their now screaming baby. She takes one arm out the shirt she's wearing, before unbuckling him, and bringing him up to her chest. She walks slowly to the nursery, and sits down to continue nursing him.

"So are you going to go?" Jay asks as he comes to stand in the door way after putting on a shirt, and sweatpants.

"Yeah, I'll go. When he's done, I'll pump a little, and hopefully he'll take a bottle while I'm gone."

"What if he doesn't?"

"Then you can call me."

"Hopefully he'll just take the bottle."

"You're not going to be stubborn like your daddy are you?" She coos at their son as he continues to suckle.

"Me? You're the most stubborn person I know."

"Your daddy over exaggerates too." She says jokingly, as she looks from him to her husband, who's slowing making his way to them. He gives her a slow, gentle kiss, before he sits down next to them.

"Have you tried giving him a bottle since that one day?" He asks, simply ignoring his wife's last statement

"Yeah."

"How'd it go?"

"I gave up after about five minutes, because I felt bad that he was so hungry he was screaming, and turning red."

Babe." He says taking Emmett from her when he detaches from her breast; Emmett screams as Jay moves him away from his mother.

"Say I wasn't done yet daddy." Erin says, gently taking him back. He roots around, making little anxious grunts, until he finds her nipple and latches on, and begins suckling eagerly again

"You'll see how upsetting it is, if he doesn't take the bottle again today."

"Well he is going to take the bottle today, isn't that right little man?" He says, and asks just as Emmett burps, causing both Erin and Jay to laugh. Erin grabs the breast pump, and begins pumping as Jay changes Emmett.

"Does that hurt?" Jay asks

"No, why?" She answers quickly, and he nods.

"I was just wondering, it doesn't seem all that pleasant." He says as he goes back out to the living room.

Once she's done, she takes the bottle to the kitchen, and puts it in the fridge. Then she goes to take a shower, and gets ready.

Before she leaves she gives each of her boys a kiss

"Have fun babe." Jay whispers against her lips.

"Thanks, you too." She says back before she leaves.

Jay puts on Toy Story soon after she leaves. And eventually he has Jonah, Josh, and Emmett sleeping on him in some way. He moves carefully to grab his phone off the table to take a picture. He's got Jonah curled into one side, and Josh is laying on his leg, and Emmett is fast asleep on his chest. Once he gets the photo, he sends it to Erin, and she immediately sends multiple heart eye emojis, and a kissy face emoji.

XXXXXX

A little over three hours later Jay doesn't know what to do, he made Jonah, and Josh lunch, and warmed up Emmett's bottle, but nothing he does is helping Emmett calm down, and he's tried everything he can think of. Just then there's a knock at the door, and in walks his brother, along with his niece, and nephews.

"Uncle Jay!" Kenzie and Noah say excitedly

"Hey guys!" Jay says, looking a little confused as he continues rocking Emmett.

"Can I hold Emmett, please Uncle Jay?"

"Maybe in a little bit Kenz, I'm going to try to get him calmed down a little."

"Ok." She says sadly.

"What are you guys doing here?" Jay asks after the kids go to play in the boy's rooms.

"We were supposed to watch the game."

"Right." Jay says

"Geez, what are you doing to him?" Will says after Emmett lets out an extra loud scream.

"Can you help me?"

"Not really, Nat always got them calmed down at that age, but I can try." He says, taking his newest nephew from his brother.

"What's up bud?" Will says quietly, as he gently bounces with him, and for a second they thought that he did it, as the infant's cries subside briefly before he begins to wail again.

"You're holding him wrong." Jay snaps at his brother, as he continues to hold him awkwardly, out in front of him while still supporting his head, and back.

"I know how to hold a baby Jay."

"Well he doesn't like to be held like that." He says taking his son back.

"I got him to calm down."

"Yeah for like five seconds."

"Is he hungry?"

"I tried feeding him, but he doesn't want the bottle."

"I mean can you blame him? Think about what he's use to eating from, would you want the bottle?" Will says, earning an angry look, and a punch to the arm from his brother.

"Ow, alright does he need to be changed?" Will asks next

"I just changed him, I even took his temp."

"Why don't you call-"

"If you're going to say Erin, save it, I can do this."

"I was actually going to say call mom, but I guess you could call Erin too."

"I'm not calling either of them."

"Fine, what about if I call Nat?" Will asks, and Jay looks down at Emmett, and sighs, before nodding.

"Asking for help doesn't mean you failed Jay." Will says just before Natalie answers her phone. He steps away to explain what's going on quickly, before coming back to the living room with Nat on speaker.

"It sure as hell feels like I failed."

"Well you didn't Jay, you're doing great, and if you'd called your wife, she'd say the same thing." She says loudly.

"So what do you think we should do?"

"Jay do you have a shirt on?"

"Yes."

"Ok Will take Emmett, and Jay take your shirt off, and the baby's too."

"Why?" Will asks.

"You called me for advice didn't you?" She says.

"Yes."

"so just trust me."

The brothers do as she says

"Ok Nat now what?"

"Take Emmett back Jay, and rock him. Will go warm up a bottle."

Several minutes pass, and Emmett quiets down some.

"It's working Nat, he's calming down already." Jay says somewhat relieved.

"Skin to skin contact is usually comforting for babies."

"Ok here's the bottle." Will says handing his brother the bottle.

"Don't try to force it into his mouth, gently place it on his lips, and see what he does." She says, and Jay does it. Emmett doesn't seem interested again, spitting the nipple out after sucking on it for a couple seconds. But then he grabs it again, and continues drinking out of it.

"He's drinking it." Will says, and Jay smiles down at his baby.

"Thank you Nat." Jay says

"Thanks babe." Will says right after.

"No problem, I'll see you at home Will, bye Jay." Nat says

"Bye." They say in unison. Jay sits down to finish feeding him, and when he's all done he burps and changes him, and then lays him down in the bassinet next to the couch, just as Will puts the game on.

XXXXXX

Erin walks in, and hears the kids playing down the hall. She throws her jacket over the back of the chair.

"Hey babe." Jay says from his spot on the couch.

"Hi, how'd it go?" She says, and asks.

"Good, we had a little trouble with the bottle, but Nat helped."

"That's great."

"I said we should call you, but you know him, and his pride." Will says, causing Erin to chuckle.

"How was your girl's day?" Jay asks, just as Jonah runs into her legs

"Mommy!"

"Hi bug." She says picking him up.

"It was nice."

"Mommy, Noah's playing with Legos with me."

"He is? What did you build?"

"A really, really tall tower, want to see?"

"Of course." She says, peeking at Emmett in the bassinet as they walk by.

"Noah!" Jonah whines as they get to the room, and the Legos are all over the floor, and the tower isn't up anymore.

"It fell." Noah says sadly.

"That's ok Noah, you can just build a new tower, ok?"

"Ok." Jonah says sadly.

"Ok, I'll come see it when you're done." She says before she goes to Josh's room next door.

"Auntie Erin." Kenzie says excitedly from where she's sitting at the top of the bed. She puts the coloring book down, and comes to give her aunt a hug.

"Hi Kenz, whacha doing?"

"Coloring, waiting for my turn on the game."

"There's a third remote somewhere, why don't you go ask uncle Jay for it."

"Ok." Kenzie says before going out by her dad and uncle.

Erin goes to their room to get dressed in more comfortable clothes.

When she's done she goes back out to the living room, and sits in Jay's spot while he's getting the remote for Kenzie. When he comes back he moves her over a little, and then pulls her back by him, once he's comfortable. She cuddles into his side, and he kisses her head as she watches the game.

Will orders pizza, for them, and the kids. The food gets there about a half hour later, and the sound of the door bell, and the dogs barking wakes Emmett up. Erin quickly picks him, and calms him down almost immediately.

Will takes the food to the kitchen, and gets each of the kids plates, and Jay stays by Erin.

"I missed you guys."

"We missed you too babe, especially this little one."

"But it worked out, cause you're an amazing dad Jay."

"I wouldn't say that."

"Well you're not a good judge." She says back, with a smile, as she puts her hand on his cheek, and then she stands on the tips of her toes, and gives him a slow, gentle kiss.

XXXXXX

Later that night after Will, Owen, Kenzie, and Noah go home. She feeds Emmett before laying him down. She watches him sleep for a few moments before going to say goodnight to Josh, and Jonah. Once they're sleeping, Jay goes to take a shower, and Erin finds herself standing out on the back porch; the blue and white baby monitor sitting on the railing. She looks down at her old sketch book, with grey and white pictures of Jay, and the dogs from when she first came here. When she gets to the end she's turns around to look at the easel next to the fireplace with her most recent painting on it. A painting with all her boys, and then sees her husband walking towards her; with a blanket in hand. He opens the door cautiously, and leaves it open a crack just in case Jonah or Josh wake up, and come looking for either of them. He gently wraps the blanket around her shoulders, as he presses a kiss to her lips. When he pulls back he sees that her eyes are still closed, and has this lazy but genuine smile on her face. She leans in, and lays her head on his chest, and he places another kiss on her head.

"What are you doing out here?" He says quietly.

"Just thinking, and looking at some of my old sketches." She says.

"Oh, from the Safe House days?" He asks, and she chuckles and nods.

"I didn't know that's what you refer to that time as, but yeah."

"What are you thinking about?" He asks next, and she traces the scar on his neck briefly before answering.

"Do you ever think about how crazy things played out?"

"I'm not sure what you mean?"

"I was just supposed to come here for a few weeks, maybe a month or two. We couldn't stand each other at first, and then it changed. And we got through stalker exes, a psycho dad, and way too many hospital visits." She says, and tears roll down her cheeks, but he quickly wipes them away, and holds her tighter.

"And here we are a few years later; happily married, and raising three amazing little boys." She says, before there's a stretch of silence. He kisses her, unknowingly pushing her to finish. She turns a little, looking at the house behind him.

"This was just supposed to be a safe house." She says giving him another kiss.

"Who knew that it…that you would become my home."

"You're my home too, and I love you, and our little munchkins." He says, and she giggles against his lips.

"I love you, and them so much. My boys. My home, always."

"Always." He repeats back.

XXXXXX

A/N: So this is it peeps, the last chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it. Thank you to those of you who have followed and favorited this story, and most of all those you have reviewed, and reblogged. And of course a huge thanks to halsteadpd for reading through each chapter, and giving me ideas, and advice when I needed it most. Much love babes, and stay tuned for my next fic


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